Gems of Knowledge

Today’s One Year Bible Verses: Jeremiah 6:16–8:7 | Colossians 2:8–23 | Psalm 78:1–31 | Proverbs 24:26

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It’s Not Too Late to Start

This morning has been hard.

I feel like I am busy all the time, and sometimes I simply get tired. Today was one of those mornings. I was struggling to get going, watching the time pass, knowing this devotional was already later than I normally like to have it out.

And somewhere in the middle of feeling behind, I heard these simple words whispered to my heart:

“Better late than never.”

Wow.

Such a common little phrase, but this morning it felt like permission to stop worrying about what time it was and just do it.

I think sometimes we can become so discouraged because we didn’t do something when we thought we should have that we end up not doing it at all.

We missed the morning workout, so we don’t exercise that day.

We forgot to call someone, and now so much time has passed that it feels awkward.

We haven’t opened our Bible in a while, so guilt makes it even harder to open it today.

We’ve put off apologizing, starting the project or making the change, whatever God has been nudging us to do. Eventually we think, Well, I should have done that a long time ago.

Maybe you should have.

Do it now.

Today’s reading in Jeremiah contains a verse that fits this beautifully:

“This is what the LORD says: ‘Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls.’”
—Jeremiah 6:16 NLT

Notice God didn’t tell them, You missed your opportunity, so there’s no point now.

He told them to stop, look, ask, and walk.

Unfortunately, the verse ends with the people saying, “No, that’s not the road we want!”

They still had an opportunity to change direction. They simply had to take it.

Psalm 78 tells a similar story. Again and again, God’s people forgot what He had done for them. They wandered, complained, doubted, and made mistakes. Yet the psalmist intentionally tells the next generation about God’s faithfulness so they wouldn’t repeat the same pattern.

That reminds me that yesterday’s failure doesn’t have to determine today’s decision.

Maybe you haven’t been consistent. Start again.

Maybe you’ve procrastinated. Begin now.

Maybe you haven’t spent the time with God that you know you need. Sit with Him today.

Maybe you’ve been putting off something He asked you to do because you think you’ve already waited too long.

Better late than never.

And don’t let guilt convince you that you need to somehow make up for all the time you’ve lost before you can move forward. Colossians 2 reminds us that our completeness isn’t found in our performance:

“So you also are complete through your union with Christ.”
—Colossians 2:10 NLT

We aren’t trying to earn our way back into God’s good graces by finally getting everything right.

We’re simply responding to Him now.

This morning I could have looked at the clock, decided this devotional was too late, and skipped it.

Instead, God gave me today’s devotional while I was worrying about being late writing it. 😂

And maybe somebody else needed the reminder too.

Don’t let “I should have done it sooner” become the reason you never do it at all.

You can’t change when you started.

You can decide to start now.

“Better late than never.”

Sometimes obedience doesn’t need to be complicated.

Just do it. 💎

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Action (5 Minutes with God)

Take at least 5 minutes to be with the Lord today. Ask Him:

• “Lord, what do You want me to know about this personally?”
  • Journal what He gives you through His Holy Spirit.
• Then ask, “What do You want me to do?”
  • Journal what He reveals – then do it!

What have you been putting off because you feel like you should have done it already? Don’t spend today beating yourself up over yesterday. Ask God what you can do now, and take one step.

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Prayer

Father, thank You for reminding me that being late doesn’t mean I’ve lost my opportunity to obey You. Help me stop allowing guilt, procrastination, exhaustion, or perfectionism to keep me from doing what I know I need to do. When I realize I’ve gotten off track, teach me to simply turn around and begin again. Thank You that my completeness is found in Jesus, not in getting everything right or getting everything done on time. Help me take the next step today. In Jesus’ name, amen. 💎

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