Regardless of how time was used before, becoming a follower of Jesus means we use our time differently. We are probably used to spending time on ourselves, but we now want to now make time for two new activities:
First, Christians are called to devote Time for God
Yes, God is present everywhere, all the time, but we want to have specific time laid aside for God. Jesus did this himself:
Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone… (Matthew 14:22-23 ESV)
This isn’t the only example, there are many examples like it. Today, people focus time on God by reading his Word, the Bible. A key part of our community is that we base all our teaching on the Bible, and encourage you to read daily. Secondly, focus on God in prayer. We encouraged you to start this in our Becoming like Family series, but don’t forget!
Second, Christians are called to devote Time for others
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:36-38 ESV)
Jesus dedicated enormous amounts of time to serving the needs of hurting people around him. Following Jesus means we are meant to focus our lives outward as well.
If all this sounds really busy, you are probably thinking we have to add these to our schedules. These are not additions, but are meant to replace, refresh, renew, or as we have named this series, reset our use of time. Some of the things we used to do were wasting time, and now we are invited to redeem that lost time.
What will you let go? Budget your time. Think of it as a limited resource, sine we can’t create time, and can only manage it.
Challenge: Watch your schedule next week. Write down how much time you spent on each activity, then categorize it as me, God or others. What’s out of balance?
Read the Bible in Sync Today
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We've looked at two extreme approaches to work: work to get it over with, and work as our ultimate goal.
Both extremes are sandy foundations for life. They wash away when the rains come, parliament changes the retirement age, or markets crash and change our industry forever.
Work reveals our foundations in life – what our ultimate goal or purpose is. Sometimes this can lead to our downfall. For example, in Japanese culture they so highly valued an ideal of never laying off workers, that many companies collapsed completely during a difficult recession. Closer to home, we can see how cost-savings at the Elliot Lake Mall, or the railway through Lac-Megantic, can seem to pay off for a while, then come crashing down with deaths, lawsuits and financial ruin to follow.
We should choose the foundation of our working lives carefully - it will eventually be revealed!
CHALLENGE: Write down a goal in your life. Make two columns underneath, writing in what will help you get there, and what could stop you. Now circle the ones that are entirely in control. What does this tell you about the foundations for your work in life – are they your’s, or God’s?
