Part 1 - It's My Time? Series

It's My Time?

Ephesians 5:15-17

September 16, 2018

We would like to believe that my time is simply that . . . my time. We believe we control our time. And if that is true, then why are so many people feeling

OVERWHELMED, OVERSCHEDULED, and EXHAUSTED.

It seems too many people are overwhelmed, ouverscheduled and that leads to our feeling exhausted. And when we feel that way, that becomes our reality and our sense of wholeness, emotionally, spiritually, mentally and physically suffers. Ultimately, we cannot be the person God called us to be, because when we are that overwhelmed, our spirit, our walk with Christ takes a hit.

So, today and for the next few weeks we’re going to look at what it means to practice good stewardship. That’s a word we really don’t understand. In the Christian world, when we hear the pastor is preaching on stewardship, we think they’re going to talk about money! But, that’s really not what the word means. The word steward really means “someone who manages something.” They could be an office manager, or overseeing a house, or they could be responsible for procuring supplies. That’s what the word means.

Those men and women who are called Flight Attendants were once called stewardesses because their job was not just to serve others, but actually to manage the people and all that occurred on the flight.

To practice good stewardship means - we are good at managing our lives. If we can’t manage our own lives, it becomes pretty evident to the rest of the world and the power of our witness, our testimony to the world is diminished. It also leads to a fractured walk with Christ.

He is the One who is nourishing our spirit, that’s so evident in John 15, when Jesus tells us ~

4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. – John 15:4-5

Consider what Jesus is telling us, and please understand this distinction is so important. Jesus is telling you this is a relationship. It’s not a one way relationship. It’s not a master and servant relationship. And this is so vital. When Jesus said, “Abide in me and I in you” He’s wanting us to realize that this is a relationship. It’s about you and I abiding in Christ. Literally, it means we are to stay or remain in Him. We don’t come and go as it suits or feelings for the day. We stay and remain in Christ. And in turn, Jesus tells us He will remain in you.

And the purpose of this is to give us strength and power. He gives us mercy and grace. He supplies us with encouragement and comfort. Because we remain in Christ and He in us, we can bear fruit. For apart from Christ, we cannot bear spiritual fruit. We may do some good things and accomplish some great things, but without Christ, we lose the spiritual power and significance.

So, that’s the basis of everything we do as Christ followers. If we’re not in Christ, if we’re not abiding in Him, we’re going to be in trouble . . . and frankly, I believe that is the biggest problem in our lives for constantly feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Yes, we will have those times in our lives when we will be stressed more than others because of circumstances. But that should NOT be our normal way of living.

When you live your life filled with God’s presence - - when you are full of God - - you will be filled with His energy, grace and strength. You will make your best decisions, pray your best prayers, love your family the best, and be a better witness to the world.

But, the complaint we hear is - - “I’m so stressed and overwhelmed. I’m constantly on the go and I’m exhausted.”

Sometimes, it seems like it’s a badge of honor that we can be like the energizer bunny. We seem to brag about our overbusy schedules. Today, we’re talking about redeeming our time. So, here’s the question ~

What would your schedule look like if God were in charge of it?

Have you ever thought about that before? I try to write down what I do each day. Not to the extent of every second, but in general, what did I do that day. If you did that, what would it look like? How many productive hours would you have and how many unproductive hours would there be? How many hours would you have spent in prayer or Bible reading?