The Follow Through

He is called, one of America’s most important and original philosophical theologians.
That is how Jonathan Edwards is described.
Edwards was rooted in reformed theology and the Puritan heritage.
He played a critical role in shaping the First Great Awakening.

Edwards loved to observe nature.
He added a philosophic dimension to his observation.
In her book, Marriage To A Difficult Man, Elisabeth D. Dodds describes Edwards.
I remember one paragraph and her description.

When he was younger, Edwards had pondered how to make the most of the time he had to spend on journeys. After the move to Northampton, he worked out a plan for pinning a small piece of paper to a given spot on his coat, assigning the paper a number and charging his mind to associate a subject with that piece of paper. After a ride as long as  three-day return from Boston, he would be bristling with papers. Back in his study, he would take off the papers methodically and write down the train of thought each slip recalled to him.
(Marriage To A Difficult Man, Elisabeth D. Dodds)

I can picture this learned man covered with small snippets of paper.
I can hear the sound the pieces made as he got down from his horse and entered his home.
I can imagine his desk as he laid out the pieces of paper in a precise order.
I smile every time I think of that scene.

I can relate to Jonathan Edwards.
I may not be a philosopher.
I may not journey on horseback.
However, I do love my post-it notes.

Anyone who has been to my home and has sat with me in my kitchen knows this to be true.
There is a cabinet next to my refrigerator that may have four or five post-it notes on it.
The note may be for some items that I need at the grocery store.
The note may be the order of my errand stops that day.

The note may be a reminder of the things that need to be accomplished.
I have a few post-it notes on my laptop as well.
The notes may be about emails I must write or items I want to research.
The beauty of the post-it system is that once completed, the note can be taken down.

I assume Edwards had the same satisfaction as he removed the snippets of paper from his coat.
There is such satisfaction when things are completed.
I can relate to Edwards since we organize thoughts in a similar fashion
We each take random thoughts, give them order, and compile them into a larger work.

However, Edwards did not have an iPhone.
Edwards did not have the ability to keep notes on his phone.
Edwards was not able to use Siri for personal dictation.
Edwards used what was available to him at the time, which helped him to organize his thoughts.

When I walk in the morning, I may compose a note on my phone.
It is a thought or an observation that I don’t want to forget.
That thought may be something I write about later that day or perhaps another day.
That note may be a quote I remembered that I want to use at another time.

One such note was spoken into my phone as I was driving.
Having Bluetooth, enabling me to be hands free, I can use Siri while driving.
It was the sign on a church that caught my eye.
I actually giggled as I dictated the words to Siri.

It’s too hot to keep changing the sign.
Sin bad.
Jesus good.
Come inside for details.

I laughed so hard when I read it.
It has been a terribly hot and humid summer here in Pennsylvania.
Loving cold weather myself, I could relate to the person who must change the sign.
I wouldn’t want to be in the hot sun and remove all the letters and replace them with new ones.

The church sign said it all.
Sin is bad.
Jesus is good.
If you want to know more about those truths, come inside and hear God’s Word preached.

Some may argue that the sign changer was lazy.
Some may say that the sign made light of eternal salvation.
I think neither of those things is true.
I think the sign was clever; it got people’s attention.

Now the important thing is the follow through.
The actual making of disciples.
The preaching, teaching, and equipping that must happen if someone is to grow in their faith.
Some churches are satisfied with a declaration of faith, checking it off an imaginary clipboard.

Saving faith may happen in a moment.
Sanctification, or being made holy and more like Jesus, takes a lifetime.
Just saying you are a believer with no follow through is not enough.
We all need help to grow in grace.

We need to sit under the teaching and preaching of the Word of God.
We need to know why sin is bad.
We need to know why Jesus is good and the only way back to the Father.
We need to know why we must be saved and how we cannot save ourselves.

The church sign was eye catching.
The church sign was a teaser.
Hopefully, the sign will get people thinking.
It may cause them to come inside and learn about Jesus and what He has done for us.

I wish I could meet the sign changer at that church.
I would love to hear about the follow through.
I would love to hear about how they make disciples.
I would love to hear how they expound on the truth they placed on that sign.

Sin is bad.
Jesus is good.
Want to know more?
Read your Bible and go to church so you can be helped with the follow through.