AM I THROWING AWAY DIRT, CLAY BALLS?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
I ponder time!
1 Cor. 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached
to others, I myself should be a castaway.
2 Cor. 6:2 NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME...
Many of us try to be good stewards of our money and resources, but we forget some very important things.
I think God shall hold us accountable for many things that we take very lightly.
The five foolish virgins never held the oil tanks accountable, and they took their responsibilities lightly.
Some of us use our talents wisely, and purposefully invest our talents into the seed bank expectting a wise harvest.
1. DO YOU INVEST YOUR TIME WISELY? GOD KNOWS HOW WE SPEND OUR TIME.
Notice that we use the words --- SPEND TIME --- TO CONSUME WASTEFULLY?
SPEND MEANS: to use up, to pay out, to exhaust, to wear out,
Poor stewards of time keepers. Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend. Spend not your time in vain.
An inch on the sundial is worth more than diamonds.
Who steals my purse steals trash, but who steals my time robs me, and thou shalt not steal.
A stitch in time saves nine.
It is easy to spend life and not learn what is most important.
2. OUR ENEMY USES A SNEAKY TIME, HE HAS US WASTE OUR TIME. HE GETS US TO THINK WE HAVE
PLENTY OF TIME?
Time is limited, a rich man can buy no more time than a poor man.
There are 60 minutes an hour, 1440 minutes a day, 10,080 a week, 43,200 minutes a month.
Do we invest our time as well as we do our money?
Satan’s greatest trick is to get you to think .... There is Plenty of Time.
Rom. 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation
nearer than when we believed.
1 Cor. 7:29 But this I say, Brethren, The time is short:
3. WISDOM MUST LEARN TIME IS TEMPORARY!
Wisdom - knows
Psa. 90:9 We spend our time as a tale that is told. --- 12. So teach us to number our days, that we may apply
our hearts unto wisdom.
In Childhood - time creeps; as a teenager - time walks; As a young adult - time runs
So little done - so much to do -
During middle age - time flies; As you travel on - "Time is gone"
4. TODAY IS ALL YOU HAVE?
Two days to never worry - Yesterday and Tomorrow
Psa. 89:47 Remember how short my time is: wherefore hast thou made all men in vain?
Have you ever had a stone in your shoe? -- a little stone in your shoe can make you not enjoy the walk.
Why keep walking? Stop and take the shoe off and correct the problem!
5. ARE YOU SURE THAT THE PROBLEM IS YOU ARE TOO BUSY?
TOO BUSY - The problem is not you are too busy -
The Bee is praised for being busy! - The Mosquito’s busy will earn it a swat!
The question IS WHY ARE WE BUSY?
6. WE GROW A VENEER OF BUSYNESS, It is just a veneer of Busyness
A. Veneer is a layer of valuable over inferior. A false show...
B. We can live in a shallow frenzy ~ no deep friendships, little commitments.
C. Our days can have great promise and dreams, that can develop into hollow nightmares.
D. We can be self feeding and selfish just feeding our egos and superegos and ~ Starve the inner man.
E. We can develop real good programs, without real change, and establish No Priorities!
7. NO RELAXING - TIREDNESS, SEEMS WE CAN FIND SAFETY IN LOUD NOISE AND SURFACE NOTHINGNESS.
Young people find safety in noise --- Loud - senseless - confused - spread by rumor.
A. We just have to have the TV -- the RADIO --- A TAPE OR A CD.
The average home with a TV in the bedroom sleeps 45 minutes less a night.
B. Look for rest - There can be great Noise of Entertainment, but it can be counter productive,
Sleep To Noise - Spirit finds no rest
8. WE CAN’T ENJOY OURSELVES?
Our brains are full ~ but our hearts are so empty!
Seems, we can’t enjoy Quietness?
A drunk once told me, I can’t stand to be by myself?
9. WE HAVE THIS KEEP UP WITH THE JONES? LIVING ON CREDIT? AN A SPIRIT OF COMPROMISE?
We just have to keep up ---- seems we can never be satisfied! Just buy the kid a toy?
1 Tim. 6:6 but godliness with contentment is great gain
A. We have become professional shoppers, the size of the malls grow, we want to live at the mall.
B. Our kids live wishing as they read the catalogs...
C. We have a spirit that we Always have to upgrade... Tricycle - skateboard - computer - friend - image ---
Empty ---
What we have?
Where we are?
What we are?
10. CONTENTMENT AND WISE TIME MANAGEMENT COMES FROM THE INSIDE NOT THE OUTSIDE!
Phil. 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want; for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
To wish to be another is to waste what you are.
SATISFACTION --- IS LEARNED --- IT’S A MATTER OF CHOICE.
11. WE WASTE TIME BECAUSE THERE IS LITTLE SELF CONTROL AND SELF DISCIPLINE!
We have a serious lack of Discipline - system of rules, Control gained by training, Train - develop - instruction!
We do not have 10 Suggestions --- we have 10 Commandments!
It is easier to whip a kid than to correct a kid.
It is easier to be a dead fish swimming down stream than to fight peer pressure.
If you don’t stand for something you will fall for anything!
1 Cor. 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached
to others, I myself should be a castaway.
A. People have no plans, we have grown impulsive, or compulsive?
People don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan.
B. We are vacillating, up and down, in and out, on fire --- I quit, we submit to no leader - and commit to no church.
C. We know how to start, but seems we never finish anything?
Situation ethics --- Lack basics --- cheat --- lie, we compromise according to the crowd.
12. WE GROW LONG NOSE PEOPLE, CORRECTING EVERYONE BUT THEIR SELF.
THE PERSON THAT OFTEN CORRECTS EVERYONE ELSE NEEDS CORRECTING themselves.
Dad always said, Don’t be to free with your advice. A smart person already knows, and a fool will not learn.
Busy Bodies with issues of manipulation and control seem to want to correct the faithful?
1 Peter 4:15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evil doer, or as a busybody in
other men’s matters.
A. Busybodies help everybody but can’t see their OWN PROBLEMS.
B. We do not abuse God, we just --- neglect --- to leave undone our ministry.
1 Tim. 4:14 Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the
hands of the presbytery.
C. Neglect - body - spirit
13. SEEMS PEER PRESSURE AND POPULARITY HAVE BECOME TIME’S GOAL?
We struggle for everybody else’s approval....
We must learn to act by faith not react to people problems, act calm ~ when in storms!
Many ignore and use denial - refuse to admit truth - to acknowledge...
A. Competition Spirits thrive within the camp of God.
B. Learn to Smile and keep secrets.
14. WE ARE SO TROPHY MINDED THAT WE SEE VICTORIES NOT PEOPLE!
You have to be a winner or you are not of God?
A. Seems we applaud only winners? We forget faithfulness?
B. Got to be best or quit - NO BENCH, no team players?
no belief - commitment - discontent - discourage - insecure - inadequate
15. GOD KEEPS GOOD RECORDS!
Stewards - timekeepers
Eph. 5:16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
REDEEM TIME - To buy or get back --- to change for better --- to free from captivity
YOUNG PEOPLE CAN’T REMEMBER S&H (Green Stamps) or Tops (Yellow) stamps that the grocery store used
to give when you bought groceries or gas. You would lick the stamps, place them in a redemption book. One day you
had enough stamps to go to the stamp store and redeem the stamps for the gift you chose.
We need to redeem the time. To buy back, to free from harm.
Our families don’t need us to buy them another toy! Jesus does not need another program?
We need time! Give your family time! Give Jesus time. Give that old person some time.
16. THROWING DIRT, CLAY BALLS OR HIDDEN TREASURES?
Did you hear about the man that found a cave?
He spent the day exploring the cave. While deep in the cave the man found a big bag of dirt balls.
Someone while in the cave took the clay and made dirt balls. There were several hundred balls of clay
in the bag.
The man decided to carry the bag out to the sea shore and throw the clay balls into the ocean.
He had thrown over a hundred clay balls into the ocean. He paused and broke open a clay ball and there
was a rare jewel inside the ball. He opened another ball, there was a diamond, another ball there was a ruby.
The man got to thinking, I am rich, I am rich, I have all these clay dirt balls with jewels in them.
Then in his excitement he got to thinking, he threw over a hundred clay dirt balls with rare jewels in them into the ocean.
He could never reclaim the value of the jewels that had been needlessly thrown into the ocean.
Wasted? Wasted?
Well, my friend, we are wasting many clay dirt balls throwing them aimlessly into a vast waste land.
Our time can never be reclaimed.
Quit it! Spend your time on what really matters!
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
Help enlarge my hands and pass this on to someone else?
