Vol. 4, No. 33 Dec. 04, 2005

One Day I’ll…

Written By Christopher Mentzer

Many of you have heard family and friends utter this phrase and add on various different endings to it. Such things like:

“One day I’ll quit smoking.”

“One day I’ll take that vacation we always planned.”

“One day I’ll be paid for my ideas.”

“One day I’ll write that novel.”

This list also includes spiritual matters:

“One day I’ll go back to church.”

“One day I’ll repent of my sins.”

“One day I’ll obey the gospel.”

Suppose you were given 30 days? I just completed a new challenge in which I had 30 days to write a 50,000-word novel. Although I didn’t reach the goal this year, I at least took a chance and made an attempt. My reasoning was, “If I try, it’ll be 30 days of agony and frustration but if I don’t try, it’ll be 11 months of ‘Could I have been successful?’”
Too many people don’t even want to try to become a Christian. They’d prefer to sit back and watch others attempt it knowing how difficult it is. They will rejoice when others are successful but they’ll simply shake their head when they aren’t. No one said being a Christian was easy. Jesus himself said, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. For narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matt. 7: 13-14, NKJV) This means many people will be going along, some thinking they are going in the same direction, but only a few will actually enter the narrow gate.

What a lot of people don’t understand is that becoming a Christian is one of the easiest things a person can do. It’s staying a Christian that is difficult. But rather than look at it from a “day to day” drudgery, one should view the big picture and realize that if one remains faithful even unto death, you will receive the crown of life (Rev. 2: 10).

The main problem with the “One Day” syndrome is that there will come a time when there will no longer be a “one day” opportunity. When a person dies, our fate is sealed and we can’t change our outcome. The apostle Paul wrote, “For we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things `done' in the body, according to what he hath done, whether `it be' good or bad.” (2 Cor. 5:10) “Things done in the body” means while we are still alive and able to make these decisions or changes. The first half of James 2: 26 states, “…the body apart from the spirit is dead…”

Although I didn’t succeed with my writing this year, I won’t sit back and say “One day I’ll be a winner.” I’ll just try again next year. Those of you out there who aren’t Christians, you should become one instead of waiting for the right moment.

Eliminate the “One Day” Syndrome by obeying the gospel now and becoming a Christian. One day you will not get another chance. “behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Cor. 6: 2)