Most parents are familiar with the words: “I’ll do it in a minute, but first . . .” Our heavenly Father often receives a similar response from His children.

I’ll never forget my inner battle one morning as I was on my knees scrubbing the kitchen floor. It began with a strong impression from the Lord that I should visit a young mother named Carol. So I decided to do it later that day. “But first I must finish this floor,” I said to myself.

Then the inner prompting began to feel more urgent. “As soon as I finish the floor, I’ll go straight over to Carol’s,” I promised the Lord. But deep inside, I knew He meant now, before the floor was finished!
A real battle of the will took place. I admitted that countless opportunities had been lost because of things I wanted to do first. Finally I said, “Okay, Lord, I’ll go now!” When Carol opened her door, she said tearfully, “How did you know I needed you right now?” I didn’t, but God did, and my surrender to Him played a part in Carol’s eventual surrender to Christ as her Savior.

In Luke 9, Jesus taught that some things can wait. That includes half-scrubbed floors—and a host of other things. But a ripe harvest can’t wait!