My publisher made a promo video this week for my book that’s releasing soon. The book is called HIGH HEELS IN HIGH PLACES so we shot the video–are you ready for this–in a shoe store! Can you imagine? Shoe shopping! And it was all for “the cause.”

Two days before we shot the video, I told my husband that it was finally time to get ready for it. I said something like, “Okay, now I need to lose 20 pounds in two days. Think that’s going to be a problem?”

Guess what. It was. After all, you can definitely call it a problem, can’t you, when the skirt you’re planning to wear will only fit on one thigh at a time? A discipline person would’ve started the weight-loss project a few months before. And actually, I did. It’s just that someone sent over a huge, exceptionally gorgeous chocolate cake. That’s when I decided that the weight loss plans were “to be continued.” After the chocolate cake came a buffet with my name on it. Then there was that cheesecake. Before I knew it, there was no time left for doing my “continuing.” Last-minute readying doesn’t work when there’s a 20-pound surplus of “to be continueds.”

I hope I never catch myself “readying” in the same way for Jesus’ coming. Do you know what 1 John 2:28 instructs me to do? Continue! “And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.” (NIV). These are instructions not to continue in trying to lose weight, or trying to live right even. They are instructions to continue “in him.” The verse right before this one says that we are to “remain in him.”

Thinking about Jesus’ return can be such a great encouragement to remain in tight and continuing fellowship with him. Obeying him, communicating with him in prayer, reading his Word, serving him, loving him whole-heartedly–that’s how we “continue in him.” That’s the way to live a fulfilling life. All cheesecake issues aside, it’s a life that we don’t have to be embarrassed about when we hear the trumpet.

And being ready for his return is eternally more important than anything else we’ll every get ready for.

Rhonda Rhea rrhea@juno.com