Fulfill Your Pledge Quickly
2 “for I know your willingness, about which I boast of you to the Macedonians, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal has stirred up the majority. 3 Yet I have sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this respect, that, as I said, you may be ready; 4 lest if some Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we (not to mention you!) should be ashamed of this confident boasting.” 2 Corinthians 9:2-5 NKJV
So often in life, we intend to do things, but life interferes and fails to live up to those intentions. There are times that we pledge to do things but don’t get around to fulfilling the pledge. In these verses above Paul is speaking to the church at Corinth. They had made a pledge to give a gift to the believers in Jerusalem who were struggling. The pledge of this gift was spoken of by Paul to the Macedonians and upon hearing of it, they were stirred by the hearts of the Corinthians.
Now Paul is reminding the Corinthians of their promise as he was sending men to collect the pledge and did not want to find the Corinthians unprepared, having failed to collect the pledged total. It is obvious that the promise by the Corinthians was well intended and sincere, but we all know what can happen when we act on the emotions of a moment and then allow time to pass. We forget and lose the zeal to accomplish what he had pledged.
This is a healthy reminder for each one of us. We are often willing to give of ourselves to benefit others and glorify God, with our money, our resources or our time. But how often has that well-intentioned sacrifice been forgotten as time passed by? We intend to act but hesitate for any number of reasons; maybe something comes up in life that distracts us. Maybe an unexpected expense arises that you have to respond to.
Life has a way of throwing things in the pathway of our best intentions. The key is in responding quickly when you intend in your heart to act. If The Holy Spirit has asked you to give financially or offer your own time and talents for another, don’t hesitate. Act quickly and obey. No matter what comes your way, it is still your responsibility to obey and act and to do so without hesitation or without thinking the process through. Obey and then watch how the Lord not only meets your needs but blesses you in ways that will surprise and delight you. What has He placed in your heart to do? Act on it today without hesitation.
J Todd Hostetler