No Excuses

There was a time when I was a kid and my family was on a trip to see some relatives in Florida and we decided to take a boat tour on a river in a very swampy area. We saw various species of wildlife, including snakes and one giant alligator who was sunning himself way off on the riverbank, but one particular moment stands out in my mind. At one point, we watched several smaller alligators come to the surface of the water right next to our boat, then disappear back beneath the surface. My dad turned to us and said, "Okay, nobody put their hands in the water now!" For my younger brother and I, that was a no-brainer. But for my older brother, he was one of those teenagers who liked to do the exact opposite of what he is told. He immediately stuck his hand in the water for a brief second and laughed about it. While he didn't lose any body parts that day, he showed a clear lack of respect. While my brother probably thought he was sticking it to my dad, the fact remains my dad would not have been directly hurt by my brother losing fingers. In reality, my brother's lack of respect was toward the ability of the gator! When we don't understand the greatness and power of something that can destroy us, we don't fear it. It works the same way with God. This week at Friendship, we'll begin our first series of 2022 called "Revealed" and talk about what it means to truly and appropriately fear the Lord. He has revealed Himself to us and that gives us "No Excuses" in how we relate to Him. Join us as we kick off this important study about how God shows Himself to us!