It’s About Time
Choose Who You Cheat
Big idea: There is only a limited amount of time in a day, week, month, and year. Everytime you choose how you are going to spend your time you choose to cheat someone… it’s important to choose who you cheat carefully.
January 07, 2007
Redeem the time you have
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:14
Time management? Every moment is a gift from God that must be managed wisely
In his book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “Time management is a misleading concept. You can’t really manage time. You can’t delay it, speed it up, save it or lose it. No matter what you do time keeps moving forward at the same rate. The challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves.” - Stephen Covey
The Bible uses another word. Instead of managing your time, it speaks of “redeeming” the time, which is an even better idea.
Paul says here that we are to be look accurately how we walk through life – we are to make the most of every opportunity.
Think of a football player that is picking his way through the field – carefully considering his way to the goal line.
If you don’t manage your time - someone else will manage it for you You can’t save time, or even waste time–you are going to spend it somewhere and invest it in someone. If you don’t control your schedule, someone will always be happy to do it for you. Some people complain they just don’t have enough time to spend with their family. You’ve got exactly the same amount of time as everyone else; you just aren’t managing your time wisely or managing yourself wisely.
Choose the Right Rocks carefully
Or consider the rocks in this jar…
I have here a jar with some rocks in it. Lot’s of pretty little rocks. Some are the size of a nickel. Some are the size of a man’s fist. Some are polished and pretty. Some are unpolished and raw. Some are attractive and some aren’t.
But here is the challenge – I have too many rocks to get them all into the jar. It’s full to over flowing and I still have some big rocks to get into the jar.
To get the big rocks in I have to empty the jar and start with them.
Rocks in a jar: big rocks; small rocks; to fill up the jar you have to put the big rocks in first.
The First Rock: Love God with heart, soul, and mind.
37 Jesus answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and most important command.
Matthew 22:37
Matt.6.33 - gives us our big, over-arching purpose of our lives. We are to love God with heart, soul, and mind. This is to be a dominating concern of our lives.
This is a hard one, sometimes, because we have so many other things going on and we can devolve into giving Him only the scraps and leftovers of our lives.
Let me be clear, that this does not refer to church activities, Para church activities, volunteer opportunities in the church, and the like.
This is referring solely to the relationship with God- to your developing that relationship. Pleasing God… and loving God… is the key.
Let’s look at a passage of scripture from Paul to the church in Corinth.
Corinth had a whole lot of problems… Chapter 1-3 there was division and pride over their preachers. Chapter 4 and 5 there was immoral behavior that was being condoned and unchallenged. In Chapter 5 and 6 the church was fighting with one another. And then in Chapter 7 Paul finally gets around to addressing the subject of their questions to him and guess what… their questions were about marriage.
People don’t change much do they? Marriage was an issue then – just as it is today.
So Paul teaches about marriage… the obligations of marriage, the blessings of marriage, the importance of solid marriages where there is no separation from one another. Then he teaches something that may come as some what of a surprise. Paul says that he wishes people wouldn’t get married at all! That he hoped people would be like he is – single.
I do believe there is a gift of singleness. Certainly it isn’t required and I’ve met a lot of single men and women who are wanting to be married so very much… They are lonely and they want to be married. If you talk to them about spiritual things and the gift of singleness they say… please lord, not me! Don’t give me that gift!
Listen to Paul’s motives though. Listen to why he wishes people to have this gift of singleness. Look at 1 Cor 7:32
The First Rock: Love God with heart, soul, and mind.
32 I want you to be free from worry. A man who is not married is busy with the Lord’s work, trying to please the Lord.
33 But a man who is married is busy with things of the world, trying to please his wife. 34 He must think about two things—pleasing his wife and pleasing the Lord. A woman who is not married or a girl who has never married is busy with the Lord’s work. She wants to be holy in body and spirit. But a married woman is busy with things of the world, as to how she can please her husband. 35 I am saying this to help you, not to limit you. But I want you to live in the right way, to give yourselves fully to the Lord without concern for other things.
1 Corinthians 7:32-35
The first big rock MUST be God if you are really going to follow Jesus. So, for you, work can’t be first, wife/husband can’t be first, children can’t be first, and church can’t be first. God must be first, and all others will find security and comfort about you when they see that reality.
Let’s talk about some practical kind of things… like marriage and divorce…
Guys… If you think a woman is going to fill your world and make life wonderful you are as goofy as all the chick flicks in Hollywood.
Ladies… If you think that some man is going to come strolling into your life and fix everything that is broken you are as screwy as the men are. It does not happen that way.
Now, I know that this is counter-intuitive. Marriage can’t work if you put one another second can it? Yes if and will if you put one another second to God.
Marriage works when there is a strong willingness to forgive. And the ability to give comes from our love of God. We forgive one another because we are forgiven.
When I focus on God’s forgiveness to me and my love for him… it softens my heart to those that are in my life that aren’t perfect. And guess what, that’s just about every one.
It’s true in marriage and it’s true among friends. It’s true with those who work together in every way – including and maybe especially in church.
I recently read of a meeting between church leaders of Germany and Poland following the end of WWII. In this meeting called for by the German ministers there was a deep desire for reconciliation and forgiveness. The German church ministers asked the leaders of the Polish churches for their forgiveness.
There was absolute silence for a long time then one influential polish minister from Warsaw where the streets were red with blood, stood and very slowly stated that he could not and would not forgive the German people for what they had allowed to happen to his people.
That became the stance of pretty much every polish minister until with great sorrow and gravity the ministers closed the meeting. Someone suggested that in an attempt to have some sense of unity that they recite the Lord’s Prayer together before they left the conference.
Every minister began and with one voice they said, “Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed by thy name, thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins, as… It was at this word that the assembly stopped speaking. Some stopped abruptly; other stumbled as they said the words “forgive us”.
For a long time there was no sound. The tension in the air was as thick as oil. The silence was broken when the Polish leader who had said he could not and would not forgive said in halting and broken words, “I, in my strength cannot, but with God’s help I will forgive.”
Relationships joined that day were healed and exist to this day. It is the gift of forgiveness that sets us apart from the animals and from those who are evil. It is God’s love that must go first into the jar. Start with your love of God and then you will see it flow to the others in your life… for these are the next big rocks…
The Second Rock: Love your neighbor as you love yourself.
39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ 40 All the law and the writings of the prophets depend on these two commands.”
Matthew 22:39-40
Then, we’re told who is next? It is who? Matt.22.39- it’s our neighbors. Who are our closest neighbors?
Husband or Wife should be first on this list
Your kids come in here at the top
Mother and Father
Brothers and sisters
People in your life like Life Group, your boss??? Yes! Co workers and friends.
It’s interesting to see that the religious leaders of the day saw over 600 rules and regulations that needed to be followed to be right in the eyes of God. Yet Jesus was able to take those 600+ rules and regulations and narrow them down to 2. He first said, “Love God.” Then He said, “Love people like you love yourself.
If we do those 2 things then we eliminate the need for the rest of the law. We don’t have to worry @ breaking the law of committing adultery if we truly love our neighbor! We don’t have to worry @ honoring other mother and father if we truly love them in the first place.
Jesus tells us… “as we love ourselves
According to Jesus’ words in v. 39 how much are we to love others? We’re to love others as much as we love ourselves. Love isn’t merely sentimental and emotional. It’s purposeful, intentional, and active. When a person is hungry, what does he do for himself?
He feeds himself! When he’s thirsty he gets himself something to drink. When he’s sick he’ll take medicine or go see a doctor. Why do we do those things? B/c we’re all consumed, whether we realize it or not, w/taking care of ourselves. We do whatever it takes to provide for ourselves.
Well, that’s the type of love we’re to have for other people: To care for their needs; to show genuine interest in who they are as people. What good is it going to do someone if we see they need to get a tire iron out of their eye and yet we just tell them, “Good luck on getting that thing out!” and then we walk off?
What does it mean to “love your neighbor”?
30 Jesus answered, “As a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, some robbers attacked him. They tore off his clothes, beat him, and left him lying there, almost dead.
31 It happened that a priest was going down that road. When he saw the man, he walked by on the other side. 32 Next, a Levite came there, and after he went over and looked at the man, he walked by on the other side of the road. 33 Then a Samaritan traveling down the road came to where the hurt man was. When he saw the man, he felt very sorry for him. 34 The Samaritan went to him, poured olive oil and wine on his wounds, and bandaged them. Then he put the hurt man on his own donkey and took him to an inn where he cared for him. 35 The next day, the Samaritan brought out two coins, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of this man. If you spend more money on him, I will pay it back to you when I come again.’ ”
What does it mean to “love your neighbor”?
36 Then Jesus said, “Which one of these three men do you think was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by the robbers?”
37 The expert on the law answered, “The one who showed him mercy.”
Jesus said to him, “Then go and do what he did.”
Luke 10:30-37
Jesus when asked this question, who is my neighbor recounted some events we remember as the story of the Good Samaritan.
James summarized it better when he wrote in James 2:15-17-“Suppose a brother or sister is w/o clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing @ his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.”
Physical needs.
Some of you right now know people who have a physical need. They might need some food b/c they’re poor or they might need something in their house or car fixed but they can’t fix it b/c they don’t have any $. You reach out to them and help them w/that need!
Don’t try to unload the responsibility on someone else. YOU meet that need as a representative of MCC and as a follower of Christ.
Emotional needs
There are emotional needs that need to be met. We are living in a world where people are hungry for attention.
Pollster George Barna did a study that concluded that while America is the wealthiest nation in the world her population is the loneliest in the world.
Years ago Father John Powell told the story about a young girl named Norma Jean Mortenson. She was a young girl who spent much of her childhood in foster homes. In one of those foster homes, when she was 8 years old, she was abused physically and given a nickel and told to tell no one.
When Norma Jean tried to tell her foster mother, her mother spanked her and told her not to say anything @ it again b/c the man she accused of abusing her was a man who faithfully paid his rent.
As time went on Norma Jean turned into a very pretty girl and people began to take notice. Boys would whistle at her and she liked it but she wished they’d also know she was a person too, not just a body.
After a period of time Norma Jean went to Hollywood where she changed her name to Marilyn Monroe. Publicity people told her they were going to turn her into an American sex symbol. It worked. She became an overnight success. But she still longed to be recognized as a person. She longed to be loved.
After she became famous, everyone began to hate Marilyn Monroe. She would show up on the set 2 hours late causing people to say she was a prima donna. What they didn’t know was she was in her dressing room vomiting b/c she was so nervous. She kept asking, “Will someone please notice I’m a person!”
She went thru 3 marriages pleading for someone to notice her as a person and not just an object. At the age of 35, on a Saturday night, Marilyn Monroe killed herself. Her maid found her the next morning on her bed w/the telephone dangling off the receiver.
Investigators later learned that she’d called another actor and told him she’d taken enough sleeping pills to kill herself. He told her he didn’t care. They were the last words she was to hear.
Clare Buce wrote she thought the dangling telephone was a symbol of Monroe’s life. She died b/c she never got thru to anyone who understood.
You can minister to people emotionally by reaching out and connecting w/them. There might be someone you know who’s been down lately. Call them this week and tell them that you’ve missed seeing them and you’d like to invite them to dinner. After you do that, invite them to church with you or to one of our LIFE Groups.
Write an encouraging letter to someone. People love to receive something that’s not junk mail.
Spiritual Needs
Of course, the ultimate need people have is spiritual. And our church and the members of this church must be people who are willing to reach out to help people have their spiritual needs met.
2007 - This Year I’m going to be working to start up a bunch of new LIFE Groups… about doing life together
That’s why it’s vital you invite people to come worship w/you on Sunday so they can hear the Word of God preached. That’s why it’s vital you bring people to our home Bible study groups so they can hear Jesus taught in a non-threatening environment that will give them the opportunity to discover Jesus and begin to mature spiritually.
You Must Choose Who You Cheat
Now here’s my question for you.
Are you demonstrating to people that you love them? I know it can be inconvenient to love people and meet their needs, but it’s something our Lord has called us to do b/c it is something He has done for us. Godly love transforms lives. A lack of love destroys.
There are scores of people around us who have never made the connection w/Jesus Christ. And it’s our job to connect them to Him.
The little rocks come after the big rocks…
Some Christians have far too many obligations, feeling that they have to fill their lives, and that if someone asks them to do something that might involve serving or church work, that they cannot say ‘no’. Yes, you can. God wants you to be able to say ‘no’, and to do so from the perspective of keeping priorities straight.
Priorities are easy to set and hard to maintain.
However, God has given us ours, so it’s easy, and we can know that we’re doing what we should be doing when we are keeping priorities. Seeking the fullness of the Kingdom and God’s righteousness in our lives gives us the overview or overlay for our lives. Under that, we need to be focusing on relationships- with God, spouse, family, then others. If we’ll keep this order of things in our lives, we’ll get done what is most important.
Maybe we’ll have to let some other activities go. For instance, Christians will likely watch less television than non-Christians and maybe go to fewer movies or other entertainment venues, although some of those can be combined with developing relationships with family and others, so they don’t have to be out of our lives. I used to take my younger daughters with me everywhere- to the bank, the store, the car wash, visiting members- I combined a lot of activities- I’m not sure whether well or not but it seemed to work for us.
IF your desire is, above all, to seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness in your life, you’ll find creative ways to fulfill the relationship priorities you have.
You’ll slow down, too, and you won’t be reveling in being busy. You’ll have an idea of how you really are, when someone asks. Sometimes, we answer ‘busy’ because we simply don’t know how we are. It’s something to think about, isn’t it? Focus, as God’s word urges, and enjoy your most important relationships more, and feel less frantic in living in this fast-paced world of 2004.
God first, family second, work & community third, then comes all the rest…
Cat’s in the cradle
The most important time you will invest will be in your family. Many of you remember the song, “The Cat’s in the Cradle” by Harry Chapin. Part of it says,
“My child arrived just the other day.
He came to the world in the usual way.
But there were planes to catch and bills to pay.
He learned to walk while I was away.
He was talking before I knew it, and as he grew
He said, “I’m going to be like you, Dad.
You know I’m going to be like you.”
My son turned ten just the other day.
He said, “Thanks for the ball, now come on let’s play.
Can you teach me to throw?” I said, “Not today,
I’ve got a lot to do.” He said, “That’s OK.”
And he walked away and he smiled and he said
“You know I’m going to be like you, Dad,
You know I’m going to be like you.”
The final verse says:
I’ve long since retired and my son’s moved away.
I called him up just the other day.
I said, “I’d like to see you, if you don’t mind.”
He said, “I’d love to, Dad, if I could find the time.
You see, my new job’s a hassle and the kids have the flu,
But it’s sure nice talking to you, Dad.
It’s been real nice talking to you.”
And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me,
He’d grown up just like me.
My boy was just like me.
Maybe you’ve heard the song, but here’s the rest of the story: Harry Chapin’s wife, Sandy, actually wrote the words to that song after their son Josh was born. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
When their son was 7, Harry was performing 200 concerts a year, and Sandy asked him when he was going to take some time to be with his son. Harry promised to make some time at the end of the summer.
That was the summer he appeared in Marquette, MI. After his concert he went to his hotel and went down to the bar and played for the folks.
He never made it. That summer, a truck hit Harry’s Volkswagen bug and he was killed.
