We Know Not the Hour

The song, “We Know Not the Hour” reminds us that Jesus will surely come but that we do not know the hour when He will come. Because we believe the promise in John 14:1-3, we continue to labor in the Master’s vineyard waiting for the day when He will appear in the clouds to receive us unto Himself. We may not be able to see our labors for God bearing the fruit in the moment, but still we continue to labor with our eyes fixed on the prize: eternal life.

Such is the work of an Adventist Educator who has the mind of Christ. Students come to us from different family, religious and social backgrounds and experiences. In our area, the majority of our students are non-Adventist. We spend our time in and out of the classroom teaching in both official and non-official hours, and trying to inculcate values into them. We become discouraged when we do not see immediate results, we become sad when we have prayerfully worked with a student or parent on specific issues and then watch them walk away without accepting our counsels. We may shed a tear from watching students we care about deeply graduating without accepting Christ as their personal savior. The list could go on and on.

Such struggles can make us feel alone, but Jesus faced similar challenges in His time on earth. Jesus worked with His disciples for three years. He mentored them and they listened. They watched him perform countless miracles. But they did not really understand Him or His mission while He was physically with them. He told them, “But when he, the spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” They only understood after He left. The Holy Spirit who He had promised came and finished the work in their hearts and the rest is history. 

Jesus was and still is the master educator. He taught and prayed for his disciples. We should do the same. He did not lose hope over them, and we should not either. He looked into the future and saw them as potential leaders; we should too. He prayed them into usefulness; we should do the same.

Let us continue to plant the seeds of salvation though we know not the hour when it will germinate to bear fruit. Let’s keep praying and believing that the Holy Spirit will finish the work for us. We will keep praying to see them all in heaven. It is going to be a wonderful moment to enjoy their testimonies by the sea of glass.

Until then, keep educating for eternity!

Author

Jane Onyinye Nwarungwa

Jane Onyinye Nwarungwa is the Associate Education Director for West-Central Africa Division (WAD). She is married to pastor JC Nwarungwa. They are parents to two young adult boys. She has served the church alongside her spouse for many years. Before joining the WAD education team, she taught in state schools for over 15 years, served as assistant chief education officer in the State Ministry of Education and lectured part-time at Clifford University. She is passionate about educating for eternity.