Our 1st Gift To Manage: Time -- Part 4

Continued from Yesterday Sept. 21st...

I want you to hear this today…

Time is our life and when we waste our time we waste our life!

How you manage your life is your worship to God!

In Romans 12:1 (theme verse for this series) , the Apostle Paul says...

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship.”

Don’t waste time – invest it!

When you spend it you get nothing but that experience. When you invest time it gives you something back – now or in eternity!

Think about this…

You can’t save time. You can only give to God or others, spend it, or invest it!

There are only two ways manage your time:

Look at what we should do.
Look at what we shouldn't do.

We need to pray and ask God “What are some things should I stop doing? What are some things I should I start doing?"

We have a choice each day.

You can do what you want to do, or you can do what you should do. Each of these choices will give a different result. I've decided....

"Should do" is the path to success. "Want to" is the path to failure!

When I live my life constantly choosing to do what I want to do. I might get immediate gratification, but I won't get lasting satisfaction.

The people that succeed in life do what they should do, even when they don't want to!

They do the hard, boring task - right now, instead of procrastinating.
They say, "No," even when they really want to say, "Yes!"

That’s what Jesus did!

The people that fail in life do what they want to do, even when they know they shouldn't!

They do the easy, fun task - right now, instead of doing what should be done. They say, "Yes," even when they really know they should say, "No!"

If we want to a better or different life, if we want to do what God wants us to do - become what God created us to be, then we need to begin choosing what we "should do" instead of what we "want to" do!

Isn't this what God's trying to warn us through the stories, commands and warnings throughout the whole Bible?

The question for us, each day, is not "What do I want to do?", but "What should I do?"

What SHOULD you do today/tomorrow? Do it.
Ask God to help you to do it.
Ask someone to keep you accountable to doing it!

In Psalm 39:5 the Psalmist says...

"My life is no longer than the width of my hand. An entire lifetime is just a moment to you; human existence is but a breath."

Even those of us who live to 100 are going to feel like time flew by!

The crazy thing about life is that when you really start to understand it, you feel like it’s halfway gone! Age sneaks up on you!

Listen to what Erma Bombeck wrote in "If I Had My Life To Live Over"...

If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television - and more while watching life.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."

There would have been more "I love you's".. More "I'm sorrys" ...

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it ... live it...and never give it back.

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Time management is holy. Organization is good. It's not that they're important and good, in and of themselves, but because of what they allow us to do!

David Allen “Productivity Guru” says his secret about why he creates "To Do" lists is so he can have time to do the stuff he wants to do - that aren't on the lists!

Managing your time allows you to do not just the things you really want to do, but the things God wants you to do!

It frees up your life to do and be what God wants for you.

Jesus is the only one who can redeem your past and give you a new future. He reaches into the trash bin of this world and is constantly looking for people and situations to redeem.

Let him do that in your life today!

Seize the moment. Make the most of your nows! We should live each day with purpose, on purpose!

In the next 4 weeks, we’ll talk about more ways to use our time effectively. The rest of the 4 gifts all can only be used in time. They all are used best when we manage our time for them.

***You can hear the talk on the next gift live this Sunday, September 24th!