Make the most of your Time!

Redeeming your Time

Text: Ephesians 5:15-17 (cf Col 4:5) – “15. Look carefully (ponder, evaluate, not casual, serious) then how you walk (manner, act), not as unwise men but as wise (compare and contrast .. see ver 8 – light and darkness; also Col 4:5 – walk in wisdom), 16. making the most of the time (redeeming the time), because the days are evil (hurt, war, etc). 17. Therefore do not be foolish (senseless), but understand (understanding with knowledge) what the will of the Lord is” (how to use every opportunity, what God wants u to do).

I do not know about you, but in the last couple of years, there has been such a demand on my time - work,church,fun,family,school,relationships and on and on...
At Home things seemed different - it was almost as if time waited for us.. Here, time almost seems the enemy. We have become slaves to time. We seem to be constantly attempting to tame time. All you have to do is take a minute to reflect on any work week or weekend.

And then there is that birthday that comes like clockwork every year that reminds us that time is ticking - against us. And the panic and fear begins to set in - questions begin to reign over answers; questions like - what have I done with my time? what have I accomplished so far?
Do you ever feel that way? I know I do..

The Apostle Paul kinda sensed that we would be in this predicament. And by the inspiration of God, Paul exhorts us about having an understanding that time is a gift from God and we should treat it as such.
So lets talk time...
The Ancient Greeks had two words they used to refer to time, Kronos and Kairos.

Kronos was used to mean clock-time or ordinary time - its now 6pm or 12pm…refering to the chronology of time, what happened yesterday in time etc..

Kairos had a far more interesting meaning. Kairos was used to refer to the concept of "the right moment'" or "the opportune.", “critical time” Kairos is used extensively in the New Testament to refer to the need to prepare oneself for the anticipated return of Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul speaks some words worth hearing. He says - Be careful how you live! Don’t live like ignorant people but like wise people. Make good use of every opportunity you have because these are evil days. The word used for "make good use of every opportunity" is often used to mean "redeem".

An analogy to this would be the same process that a pawnshop uses - they buy back items, almost as if they are buying back the time. So- If we understand it this way it means that the time we have is in the hands of some evil force and we have to redeem it. One commentator says: buy it back from its evil bondage.

The meaning is clear - don’t let time be your master so that you are enslaved by it. Buy it back so that it becomes a gift rather than a burden. More likely: “buy up” each opportunity. Sort of like a person who looks for assets to make them wealthier. Buying up here, buying up there. Buy up the time, treasure it, put a value on it, make use of it – that’s a characteristic of a wise person over against a foolish one. Invest your time so that it more closely is in proportion to what you most value.
Every time you use your coupon of time, use it well.. Choose the right opportunity..

Here is something that speaks to the value of time.
The Value of Time by anonymous

Imagine there is a bank, which credits your account each morning with $86,400. The rules of the account are as follows:
- No Balance can be carried over from day to day
- No cash balance is allowed
- Every evening it cancels whatever part of the amount you have failed to use during the day
What would you do?
DRAW OUT EVERY CENT, OF COURSE!

Everyone has such a bank! Its name is TIME. Every morning it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balances and does not allow you any overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for you. Each day it burns the records of the day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours.There is no going back. You must live in the present of today’s deposits. Invest in it to get the most….
The clock is running….. Make the most of Today….

TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE YEAR…ASK THE STUDENT WHO HAS FAILED HIS FINAL EXAM….
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE MONTH… AS THE MOTHER WHO HAS GIVEN BIRTH TO A PRE-MATURE BABY
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE WEEK…ASK THE EDITOR OF A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER…
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE DAY…ASK A DAILY WAGE EARNER WHO HAS SIX KIDS TO FEED….
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE HOUR…ASK THE LOVERS WHO ARE WAITING TO MEET…
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE MINUTE…ASK A PERSON WHO HAS MISSED A TRAIN..
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE SECOND…ASK THE PERSON WHO HAS SURVIVED AN ACCIDENT OR…
TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF ONE MILLI-SECOND…ASK THE PERSON WHO HAS WON A SILVER MEDAL IN THE OLYMPICS…
TREASURE EVERY MOMENT THAT YOU HAVE!REMEMBER, TIMES WAITS FOR NO ONE…

How then as a Christian do you redeem your time? Or make the most of your time?
1. Analyze your lifestyle (v15)
2. Utilize the present (v16)
3. Prioritize what is important (v17)

Notice that we all get the same amount of time… but we produce different results with our time. We need to learn how to manage ourselves within the time given rather that try to manage time..

A final thought - In Ecclesiastes 3:1- 2 we see that there is a time for everything…
Here are some practical ways we can spend our time wisely:
Praying for one another – James 5:16 – “Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects”.
Encouraging each other – 1 Thessalonians 5:11 – “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing”.
Making disciples of men - Matthew 28:19 – “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,…”
Singing psalms and hymns – Ephesians 5:19-20 – “addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, 20. always and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.

As I conclude I want to remind you of 1 Corinthians 6:12 - "I may do anything I want to do, but not everything is best for me. Yes, "I may do anything I want to do,"but I won't allow myself to be a slave to anything.

Discussion Question: What things are you doing in your life to redeem time? please leave a comment!

Lord - Give me this Mountain!

Possessing your Mt Hebron

After the Children of Israel have wandered in the desert for 40 years, Caleb goes to Joshua and petitions him for Mt.Hebron. You can read the story in Joshua 14:10-13

In the book of Numbers, we are told that Caleb was one of the twelve spies that Moses sent into the Promised Land. He was one of the two that brought a good report concerning the Promised Land.

So - fast forward and we now find him in the Book of Joshua asking for a particular piece of land. One is left to wonder why - what is it that he knew about this Mt..that no-one else knew? And are there any lessons we can learn?

To make it even more difficult, Caleb is asking Joshua to possess the land where the sons of Anak the Giants lived. In fact Joshua 14:12 tells us that the cities where "great and fenced". However, Caleb trust that if the Lord be with him, he would conquer the giants and posses the Land.

You know why Caleb was asking for this land? Because this was the choicest / best piece of land!Read Numbers 13:22-23

BUT this is not what I want you to see. What I want you to consider with me today is that you and I have a Mt. Hebron that we are asking God for! For us to enter and possess our mountain, we have to deal with and overcome some of the following:

- The Anak giants of the land (Debt, Poverty, Lack)
- The Canaanites (Control, Manipulation)
- The Amalekites(Depression)
- The Hittites (Fear)
- The Jebusites (Rejection)
- The Amorites (Pride)

REMEMBER - GOD has ALREADY given you the Land! What he want from you is the Spirit of Caleb - bold, tenacious, an asker, willing to fight. God is looking for you and I to say what Caleb said - "If God is with me" I will POSSESS the land. For if God be for you, who can be against you?

Friends we should desist and resist this "Grasshopper syndrome". Instead of seeing the Giants, see the God greater than the giants..Remember what Jesus said? - "All(not some!)power and authority has been unto me in heaven and earth. YOU and I have this same power- through the name of Jesus. Whatsoever I bind on the earth is loosed in heaven (Matthew 28:18; 16:19)

I want to say this again - YOU and I are more that conquerors! in the face of Debt, Poverty, etc (add your ..tes and Giant here! No weapon (financial, physical, generational, name it!) formed against me shall prosper. This is MY HERITAGE as the servant of God (Isaiah 54:17)

So - now that we have established that we have possession of the land..HOW exactly do we conquer our giants, the ..ites and ...sites in our lives?

Prayer, Confessions of Faith, Getting out of debt (debt plans), replacing ungoldy, fearful thoughts with the word, money management etc... BUT here is what I want - YOU tell me your story....what steps are you taking / will you take to possess your Mt. Hebron?

Have you ever asked WHY?

Today I ask why? Have you ever asked why? Why do I exist? ah the question of all questions!

Why did I do what I did today? Go where I went today? Say what I said today?

Why did I have to meet those people that I met today? Why did I have to talk to the people that I talked to today?

Why was the bus late today? Why did she say what she said to me today? Why was he wearing the clothes he wore today?

why? why? Why?

To some life is just a series of coincidences - to others, life is what happens to them. To me life is ordained, purposed, decreed. Before I was, there was - or better still - He was. And when I begin to look at life that way - then I cease to ask why?

And if I do ask - like today, well then its just one of those days!