Have you been cooking and then found that you didn’t have all the ingredients you needed? So you quickly ran to Walgreens, CVS, or the corner store. These are called convenient stores. 

A convenient store is a store with extended opening hours, and within a convenient location- close by. They stock a limited range of household goods and groceries. Oftentimes, the products offered come in smaller quantities but it’s just enough to provide you with what you need until you can get what you really need. 

Convenience means: A quality or situation that makes something easy or useful for someone by reducing the amount of work or time required to do something. 

Are you comfortable with asking someone to do something for you, if you do not know them? Would you ask a stranger to watch your child while you went grocery shopping?  Or, if you were eating at a restaurant and had to go to the bathroom, but you were the only adult and had 3 small children with you. Would you ask a stranger from another table to watch your babies?

That’s how we do Jesus. We come running to Him and then expect for Him to do what we ask and we really don’t know much about Him. Then we give the “or else” clause. 

• “If you don’t do this, I’ll go back to doing that.”
• “If I don’t get this job, I’ll go back hustling.”
• “Forget it, He didn’t answer yet. Everybody else got somebody. It doesn’t take all that. I want to be married too.” I have a good judge of character. 

Uhh hmmm- so…how can you give God an ultimatum? We’re talking about the true and living God. You know, the one that raised Lazarus from the dead. Yeah, the one that parted the Red Sea. 

Oh I see- I get it. These examples are not “real” to you because you didn’t live during those times. Yeah- it’s just a “biblical story.” Okay. How about the one that covered you when bullets flew from every direction but did not harm you? How about you been doing everything you knew to do right, and still didn’t have enough to feed your family but SOMEHOW He touched someone’s heart to get you groceries? What about that procedure you had to have performed on your body and doctors gave you a 50/50 chance of survival, but God raised your percentages? Oh yeah, or when you weren’t sure if you could register for college because your financial aid didn’t “kick in” and He stepped in right on time? 

We want to lay at the altar and give our lives as a sacrifice to God, but only…when it benefits (or conveniences) us. The Lord has already given us many conveniences we didn’t deserve.

• He conveniently provided you with a job, but you inconveniently did not honor Him and give Him the first fruit of your increase (Tithes and offerings). 
• He conveniently allowed your child to be born with no health issues when you inconveniently decided to give in to temptation – confessing Christ the entire time, making His power of no effect in your life. 
• He conveniently covered you even when you inconveniently decided not to separate yourself from the people, places and things that YOU KNOW would bring temptation. 

Your matters of convenience is inconveniently separating you and blinding you from what should matter most in your life: your relationship with Jesus, which everything else should be built upon. I’m reminded of an older hymn:

“My hope is built on nothing less…on Christ, the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand”

“He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, And my refuge, is in God. Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah” Psalms‬ ‭62:6-8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬