Carpe Diem!
Seize the Day
Part 2
Last week we talked about seizing the day and one way to do that and this week we will continue with that thought.
When was the last time you woke up and said “It’s time to get up out of bed, God wants to change the world through my life”?
God does want to change our life and the world around us every day. We talked about God calling us.
God has called us to do something.
Matthew 28:19&20
19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Psalm 118:24 NIV
24 This is the day the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
God wants us to live our lives to the fullest.
John 10:10 NIV
10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
John 10:10 (KJV)
10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Did you see what it said in the KJV? More ABUNDANTLY? Do you know what that means?
1. plentiful: present in great quantities
2. well-supplied: providing a more than plentiful supply of something
"Overflow"
God wants us to have a life better than we ever dreamed of and He wants us to have the desires of our hearts.
Psalm 37:4 NIV
4 Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
The question is what does our hearts desire?
Is it what God wants for us?
God wants us to seize the day because within each day there are opportunities God has given just waiting to be opened.
You may ask how we do that.
1. Use the Jonathan factor
What is the Jonathan factor? Let’s see for ourselves.
1 Samuel 13:3-8NIV
3Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, “Let the Hebrews hear!” 4So all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become a stench to the Philistines.” And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.
5The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. 6When the men of Israel saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. 7Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. 8He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter.
1 Samuel 14:6-8 (The Message)
6Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on now, let’s go across to these uncircumcised pagans. Maybe God will work for us. There’s no rule that says God can only deliver by using a big army. No one can stop God from saving when he sets his mind to it.”
7His armor bearer said, “Go ahead. Do what you think best. I’m with you all the way.”
8Jonathan said, “Here’s what we’ll do. We’ll cross over the pass and let the men see we’re there
He did not know if God was going to rescue them, save them, or if he was going to die. All he knew is God called him to do something and he was going to do it, no matter what the end result was.
The second thing we need to do is use
2. Use the Paul Factor.
What is the Paul factor? Paul started to do what God asked and even when doors were closed he kept going.
Acts 16:6-10 NIV
6Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
Acts 16:6-10 The Message
6They went to Phrygia, and then on through the region of Galatia. Their plan was to turn west into Asia province, but the Holy Spirit blocked that route. 7So they went to Mysia and tried to go north to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn’t let them go there either. 8Proceeding on through Mysia, they went down to the seaport Troas.
9That night Paul had a dream: A Macedonian stood on the far shore and called across the sea, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10The dream gave Paul his map. We went to work at once getting things ready to cross over to Macedonia. All the pieces had come together. We knew now for sure that God had called us to preach the good news to the Europeans.
Paul did not stop when things did not go his way, he kept doing what God wanted him to do wherever it would eventually lead
When God calls us He want us to just start doing it, even when we don’t know where He is leading, what the outcome will be, how He (God) Will answer or what He will do or even if He will rescue us.
We normally do not have control over when or how we die, but we do have control on how we live our lives. Seize the day!!!
When we move with God He always shows up. It is just difficult to predict what He will do or how He will do it. If we wait for guaranties, the only thing that will be guarantied is that we will miss endless opportunities that we can know for certain.
Sometimes God is already there just waiting for us to show up.
There is one more factor we nee to use. That is
3. Use the Faith Factor.
How do we do that? Lets look at scripture to find out.
Hebrews 11:1-6 NIV
1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for.
3By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
4By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.
5By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:13-16
13All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
When god calls us He want us to just start doing it, even when we don’t know where He is leading, what the outcome will be, how He (God) Will answer or what He will do or even if He will rescue us.
We normally do not have control over when or how we die, but we do have control on how we live our lives. We need to Seize the day!!!
God has called us to take His message to the world, will we do it or not? It is your decision.
As It says in Joshua 1:6&7,9 and 18 “Be strong and courageous!” Let us Seize the day
