Why Leave It So Late?

Some travelers of our acquaintance encountered one of those sudden violent onslaughts of the elements – such a storm as man is never quite prepared for. It became a question of survival. And afterward, one of them soberly said: “There were some people who talked to the Lord that night, who had not talked to Him for a long time.” It is true that times of danger, of fear, of urgent need often bring us to an earnest awareness of our dependence upon Providence. And when we are pressed to pray to Him to whom we haven’t talked for a long time, the question may well be asked: “Why leave it so late?” We never know, not any of us, when we are going to need help or when we shall wish we had done some things we didn’t do. We never know when our business ventures are going to suffer. We often assume that profits or success are certain, and then some unforeseen circumstance enters in, and we find that they weren’t so certain. Sometimes in success, shortsighted people assume that they won’t need their old friends – or that they won’t need anyone. But fortunes change; and we often find that we desperately need those from whom we have separated ourselves. There is no one so big, no one so secure, no one who can so far foresee the future, but what he needs to keep his house and his life in order, his record straight, and his friendships in repair. And a man who needs friends had better have them before he needs them. There is no one so wise or so self-sufficient but what he needs the services of others. And when the storm has broken, when the accident has happened, when the need is upon us, it may be a little too late. It is always too late to take out insurance to cover a previous casualty. Of course we can repent. But even that we should not leave too late. We ought to be on good terms with our family and friends, with ourselves, with life, and with our Father in Heaven all the time. Humility and gratitude and consideration for all others and a prayerful approach to every problem is the safest insurance. And a good question to ask ourselves always is, “Why leave it so late?”