“How To Make The Most Out Of Your Opportunities”
Colossians 4:2-6
David P Nolte
We all have daily opportunities to be all we can be, to learn lessons of trust and obedience, to serve God and man faithfully.
It may be some pain or suffering, or sorrow, or loss. It may be an encounter with another person in need. It may be an overflowing joy and peace from a refreshing in God’s Spirit. It may be when God shows us a needed change in our lives. It may be when God urges us to some service for Christ.
To all of us there come these and other significant, but perhaps small, opportunities in life. When those opportunities come, how can we make the most of them? Let’s read the Scripture and then I will offer three suggestions.
“Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open ullfep to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak. Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.” Colossians 4:2-6 (NASB).
I. TRY TO FIND THE OPEN DOORS GOD PROVIDES:
A. Paul asked that they pray that “God will open up to us a door for the word.”
B. Remember that sometimes God closes doors. We want to do some certain thing and it becomes impossible for us to do it. The door is closed to us for that. It may be that:
1. We apply for a job and someone else gets it. That door is closed.
2. We pray for an opportunity to buy a house or car and we can’t swing the deal. That door is closed to us.
C. Closed doors are often God’s way of protecting us and guiding us and teaching us.
1. The problem is that we look so long at, or we pound so hard on, or we worry so much about, or we so deeply lament the closed doors we miss the one God has opened!
2. Someone said, “If God closes one door, He always opens another better one.”
D. For Paul it was an open door for service. For us it may be that or something else.
1. But God has opened doors to us.
2. Jesus said to the Church at Philadelphia, “Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut.” Revelation 3:8 (NASB). I believe He still says that to His church as a whole and to His people individually.
E. But there are opportunities in life when no door seems to be open.
1. We may have to wait for it patiently. God’s timetable is not ours. He uses a different Timex than we do. He’s never late or early!
2. We may have to learn to just quietly trust, and that’s always a good lesson to learn. When nothing seems to be opening, just trusting and not striving is the best thing to do.
3. To find the open door we must live in constant fellowship with Jesus, to obey His commands, to trust His Word and to follow where He leads. As one song says, “Lead me, Lord, I’ll follow anywhere You open up the door.”
4. We certainly have to look for that open door. So:
a. We pray for guidance.
b. We ask advice of godly people.
c. We check every lead we have.
d. We knock on every door that looks available.
5. If we are seriously seeking, we’ll find it: “Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened to you.” You have Jesus’ word on that!
F. Remember the story of the silly fly? He was in a room and wanted to go outside. He spied a window and flew right at it. Problem was that the window was closed. He smacked right into it and fell, dazed, onto the window sill. Undaunted, he recovered his wits and flew a little harder at the window – which was still closed. Once again, he fell nearly unconscious onto the window sill. The third time he really gunned it and whacked into the still closed window. He was really dazed but when he recovered, he thought, “No use trying the same thing over and over. There’s gotta be a way out of here!” He looked around and saw an open door just across the room. Out he flew. Many of us just keep banging on a closed door instead of finding an open one. Why keep doing what doesn’t work?
Look for that open door, and:
II. TRY TO MAKE THE BEST OF THE WORST:
A. Paul asked for prayer and for open doors that he may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which he had been imprisoned.
B. Paul had opposition to his ministry. He had enemies. Life was not easy for him.
C. Troubles came along constantly.
1. Sometimes I think it would be great to experience only things that provide joy, peace, pleasure, ease, and comfort but that isn’t the way of life.
2. We need to deal with whatever happens.
D. I received an email which strikes at this subject. It reads, “Keep going! Life punches you in the stomach. It knocks your breath out and leaves you bowed and gasping. You lose a job; you must keep going. You find out you have a serious illness; you must keep going. The bills seem to never end and the money seems to never start. Keep going. There are times that make us just want to curl up, stick our heads in a hole, and make the world go away. We can’t, because we must keep going. In times like those, and we all have them, remember the blessing. The blessing is not in that we must keep going. The blessing is that we can.” There are opportunities in life when quitting seems easiest and best, but keep going!
E. There are some clichés which say what I am saying:
1. “If life gives you a lemon, make lemonade.” Make something good of what you think is bad.
2. “Never put off until tomorrow what you must do today.” Procrastination doesn’t solve your difficulties, it merely prolongs them.
3. “Behind the clouds, the sun still shines.” Even hard times don’t eliminate the good, they just obscure it temporarily.
4. “After the rain comes the rainbow.” Better things are sure to come.
5. “It’s always darkest just before the dawn.” Things will improve in time.
6. “No pain, no gain.” We grow most through struggles and hardships.
7. “There’s light at the end of the tunnel.” Remember that there is always hope.
8. “This, too, shall pass.” Even the worst of things are temporary.
F. I read about a preacher named Owen Crouch. When he was in his 60’s he was approached by a group of businessmen who were starting a company, and they said wanted a man of his integrity to handle the books.
He took the job, kept the books, wrote the checks, signed the contracts… and when the company was hauled into court for fraud and shut down because of its illegal business practices, this preacher’s name was the only one on any of the paper work.
He hadn’t realized the business was a sham. He hadn’t realized the businessmen he had worked beside were crooks. But - he went to prison all the same. Those business men even got lighter sentences than he did.
It wasn’t fair, or just, or right. But he was left holding the bag and setting in prison. But Owen Crouch leaned on God believing that wherever he was, God could use him. So he began ministering to the other prisoners, leading them to Christ and teaching them to be strong Christians when they left those prison walls. Peter wrote, “If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by His name!” 1 Peter 4:15-16 (NLT2).
Like Owen try to make the best of the worst, and:
III. TRY TO WALK IN WISDOM
A. Paul wrote, “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.”
B. Wisdom Is seeing life from God’s perspective and living it according to His will.
1. Wisdom to be devoted to prayer.
2. Wisdom in our conduct toward those outside the church.
3. Wisdom in our speech that nothing rude or lewd or crude comes out of our mouths.
4. Wisdom in responding to others, kindly, patiently, graciously, lovingly.
C. The problem is that, as an old German proverb said, “We grow too soon old and too late wise.”
D. There are times when we wish we could undo a terribly unwise word or action.. But that’s just not possible.
E. Let me illustrate: A young boy was careless and broke his mother’s best vase. It was crystal and he tried his best to glue and scotch tape the pieces together. Didn’t work.
He wished he could go back and undo the damage but he knew he couldn’t. He went to his mother and confessed his deed, as much because he realized the impossibility of hiding the fact as because he was truly sorry. After telling her, he said, “Mom, I tried to fix it but it wouldn’t stay glued.” She said, “Well, honey, I am glad you were honest, but I hope you learned to be more careful. You can’t go back and un-break something.”
F. Nor can we go back and un-sin, un-lie, un-cheat, un-hurt someone. We can’t go back, but the wise will seek the strength and counsel and leading of Jesus and will have wisdom to do right and not have to look back in regret.
In each and every opportunity is God. This is such an opportunity for you to make a decision which will radically impact on all the rest of your life for time and for eternity. Whatever is going on in your life, let God be involved.
When you come to that moment in life where all you have is God, you will discover that God is all you need. God has set before you the open door to eternal life. He wants you to find it and to enter it. He urges, He appeals, and He calls. Those who hear, and who respond in faith, will find grace and mercy and help for every moment in life. As He gave His life for you, so now give your life to Him as we stand to sing: Take My Life And Let It Be Consecrated
