The 10 Second Rule
Of course, it’s not referring to things like doing the
dishes or laundry, because if it was, I am certain there would be piles of both
that would never get done. I mean really, who thinks, “I should do the dishes”
and within 10 seconds goes and does them? For those of you saying to
yourselves, “I do”, I simply say to you,
“SHOWOFF!” (Haha!) No, The 10 Second Rule refers to
things on more of a spiritual level. If we’re honest, we all have those moments
when we are prompted to do something or say something, but do we?
In a recent Bible Study on worship, a group of ladies
discussed that even simple acts of obedience are considered worship. One lady talked
of a tyme that she was in a small conference and the facilitator asked everyone
to say something about themselves that defined their core values. She said when
it got around to her, she was prompted to say that she was a Christian, but she
decided against it and said something else. The facilitator went around the
room again with the same question and the same thing happened. Finally, on the
third trip around the room with the same question, the lady said what she was
led to say and the conference moved on.
Fortunately, the lady in the story got multiple chances to
follow the lead she was given, but that is generally not the case. 99 tymes out
of 100, we have precious few seconds to do what we are led, or better yet
asked, to do. The lady admitted she was afraid to say she was a Christian
because it was a work conference, not a God focused conference. Ah, hello fear.
Fear is often the reason those seconds tick away without
action on our part. We are afraid of what someone might think of us. We are
afraid of the reaction we will get. We are afraid of getting hurt, ridiculed,
and judged for what we are asked to do. Since we don’t know how it will turn
out, it’s easier to just think, “it’s not my place to say anything” or “God
will send someone to help in that situation”. But what if we are the “someone”?
Recently, while on my way to classes at the local community
college, I stopped at the store. I had dropped a friend off at work and was
running early, so I thought I would use my tyme to get some things I needed. I
forgot to eat breakfast, so I decided I would find something to eat on the way
to the college. Being a fan of Oatmeal Cream Cookies and not often allowing
myself to eat them, I decided I would get a box of them and have one, just ONE,
for breakfast. I checked out with a few things, and my cookies, and was soon on
my way.
As I drove out of the parking lot, I saw a girl sitting
along the curb, holding a carboard sign.
Now, let me pause here and admit to you that my thoughts
are not always the best thoughts when I see people sitting on the curb with a
cardboard sign. I have seen people stop to give money and watched the person
with the sign whip out a wad of cash that could make a mortgage payment. I’ve
also seen the people with the sign so clearly drunk or under the influence of
drugs, it was clear that the help they needed could not be bought.
While I am certain that there are some people who really
do need help, my experience in such situations makes me quite leery, and makes
me question the altruism of the cardboard sign holder. What can I type, I’m not
perfect. Anyway, back to the story…
For whatever reason that day, I made eye-contact with the
girl holding the sign and I saw something different. I can’t tell you what it
was, but I can tell you that it affected me. As I drove by her and pulled out
on the main road, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was supposed to do
something. What could I do though? I wasn’t going to give her money for those
reasons stated earlier, but I felt a powerful prompting to turn around and do
something.
A few seconds later, I found myself back at the store and
pulling up close to where she was sitting. I knew that she saw me when I drove
by her the first tyme, so I was certain she realized that I turned around and
came back. As I got out of the car, I grabbed some oatmeal cream cookies and
walked over to her. She stood up and took a few steps toward me. I handed her
the cookies and said, “I don’t have much to give you, but I don’t want you to
be hungry.” She quietly thanked me and I thought to myself that I answered the
prompting and I was good to go, but no. Another prompting.
“Tell her I love her and tell her that I made you turn
around and come back just to tell her that.”
Okay. So … I admit that I was getting dangerously close to
allowing the 10 seconds to expire on that prompting. I don’t know why it seems
odd to tell a random and total stranger that God loves them. I mean as a
Christian it should be second nature, or really first nature, to say that, but
that familiar adversary Fear really is a factor.
“Tell her I love her and tell her that I made you turn
around and come back just to tell her that.”
10….. Not turning.…. 9….. Walking away….. 8….. Another
Step… 7….. 6……..5………4………3……
“God wants you to know that He loves you and He made me come
back just to tell you that.”
I really couldn’t believe that the words came out of my
mouth, but they did. I mean I wanted to tell her, but I didn’t think I had it
in me. That’s not how I was raised. I have no formal training in evangelism or
public speaking, and I have a great deal of anxiety and fear that prevent me
from doing the things I should do. So how was it that I just told her of God’s
love for her? It was The 10 Second Rule.
You see, when we have Jesus in our heart, He has first
access to us. He knows how we should respond and react to things, and He tells
us. Quickly behind Him though comes human nature, and that’s where things go
awry. Many opportunities are lost in the 11th second. That one tick
on the clock can convince us that we don’t need to do what we are asked to do,
and that robs us and others of many blessings.
To this day and likely every blessed day to come, I will
never truly know what God’s words meant to that girl, but the one thing I do
know is that they meant something. The look on her face changed when she heard His
words to her. I don’t know if it was relief, disbelief, regret or acceptance,
but it was something. God’s words reached her because I listened to Him.
You know, the truth of the matter is, God does not need us
to help Him. He could have reached that girl without me, but that wasn’t how He
wanted it. He made it clear that I was part of His plan for that girl, and
honestly, she was part of His plan for me. I learned a lot in that experience that I will
hopefully carry with me.
There is nothing more important in this life than accepting
Jesus Christ as Savior, but almost just as important, is telling others about
Him. While some opportunities to share Jesus are easy, many are difficult. We
don’t have to think twice about sharing Jesus with those who we know, but it
often takes a second thought … or even 10 seconds of thought … to share Him with
strangers.
Isaiah chapter 55 is titled, “An Invitation to An Abundant
Life” and in verse 8, God says, “For My thoughts are not your
thoughts, nor are your ways My ways”. While the chapter is filled with
beautiful advice, wisdom, and promises, I think verse 8 is The 10 Second Rule.
God’s ways don’t always – or even often – make sense to us, but when He prompts
us and asks us to do things His way, we need to listen. We need to act directly
so that the fear and doubt that show up in the 11th second don’t prevent
us from blessing others and receiving God’s blessings in return.
So, the next tyme we get that prompt, that nudge, that idea,
that thought or inkling to do something that shares Jesus with someone else,
let’s remember that God still talks to His children through the Holy Spirit. We
may not understand the prompting, but when Jesus is Lord of our lives, we know
when a prompt is from God, and we know His ways are not our ways. We know that the
gift of Salvation through Jesus Christ is completely free to everyone, and when
we accept it, God calls us to share it…and often, as a rule, in under 10 seconds
flat.
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