Hey . . . the top of another week . . . Sunday is 24 hours into the history books . . . and I feel like playing.  So let me invite you to play with me.

Let’s pretend.

We used to do that when we were kids.  When you pretend, you can be anyone that you want to be and you can construct any scenario or circumstance that you want to imagine.

So here’s the pretend . . .   Let’s pretend that God wants to be a part of your life today and in the week to come, in supernatural wayMy nephew Tayson - Batmites . . . ways that don’t make sense to us.  Pretend that He is not going to tell you ahead of time what He wants you to do, so you can’t write His agenda into your daily planner.  His guidance will come to you in an interruption to your plans.  It probably won’t be convenient, just like when a mother gives birth.  So you have to be ready and prepared to respond in a heartbeat.

For instance, let’s pretend that God actually speaks to us in the middle of our everyday routines . . . that if we listen we can actually receive direction from Him.  When you find yourself in conflict with the playground bully who is now your boss, and you are tempted to get down and dirty with him or her, pretend that if you take a deep breath and say from your heart, “Help me right now Lord.  Give me wisdom.”, . . . there will actually be an answer.

The breath and the prayer, gives you a millisecond to remember that there is always something on the line from a spiritual perspective.  You sacrifice your pride . . . another millisecond . . . a whispered prayer for the person that you might just as easily hate . . . and something different happens.  Maybe the difference is just in you but you realize just how significant that is, all by itself.

Now, pretend that this was actually God involved in your life and it wasn’t even Sunday.

Pretend that the Bible is actually a book for you in which God reveals His heart.  Pretend that God doesn’t care if you read it as a matter of duty but that you can’t do without it.  Pretend that extended neglect of the Book makes you weak just like a person becomes when they fail to drink water . . . dehydrated.

Pretend that all around you, there are people who are headed to straight to an eternal chasm and the bridge is out.  There is inescapable death, destruction and pain there, but there is a narrow road that will take them to a bridge that will help them cross to the other side.  Pretend that you can make a difference if you warn them somehow.  The problem is that they think you are crazy.  Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to convince them that the warning and the danger is real.  It is going to require you tapping into the kind of help that only God can give.  He has to become so real in your life that they cannot ignore the warnings that you give.  Just pretend that this was part of what it meant to call yourself a Christian.

Now I know that playing “Let’s Pretend” is difficult sometimes and people don’t always like the “pretends” that come from someone else’s mind and heart.  So if you don’t want to play, I understand.  It does sound strange, doesn’t it?  Actually, as a pastor, I have found very few people who want to play this “pretend” game.  There are a few though.  When we play together it is an amazing experience.  If only it were real . . . but that would involve too much pretending . . . wouldn’t it?