DATE: – 7TH FEBRUARY, 2021
TOPIC: – DEALING WITH TIME WASTERS (Part 2)
BIBLE PASSAGE: – PROVERBS 30:18 – 33
MEMORY VERSE: – “The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by hands” (Proverbs 30:27)
INTRODUCTION: –When God created the earth, He put everything in its proper place. The Garden of Eden was a well-planned and organized place. There is a place for each river and resources, a place for each tree, and a place for meeting with man in the cool of the day. God did not muddle up everything in one place, rather He organized the garden such that it makes it easy for man to dress and keep it (Gen.2:8-17; 3:8)
LESSON OUTLINES: –
A) Identifying The Time Wasters And How To Overcome Them
i) Lack of Organisation: – How much time do you spend looking for something? Can you ever find what you want when you want it? How organized is your room and house? How organized is your kitchen and store? How organized is your office and work place? Are you the type that throw things anywhere, anyhow and when you need it again you begin to look for it?
Get organized, get tidy up, and arrange your things properly. Let everything have a specific place of keeping it. Sort out your kitchen, store, your room, your office, table drawers, file etc. put everything in order (1Kngs 18:33, 1Corint.14:40). This may take time but it will go a long way in saving up valuable time. The next time you need something you won’t have to waste time looking for it.
ii) Worry: – This is a terrible arrow that the devil always shoots into human life to waste his/her time. Worry is bringing tomorrow’s burden to add to today’s burden and thus, depressing the bearer. When we get worried, it makes our problems to consume us that we become too weak and discouraged to do anything meaningful. And many of our worries are just much ado about nothing. Worry does not add any value to our lives rather it waste it (Matt.6:25-34).
The Holy Spirit, speaking through Apostle Paul to the Philippian brethren said “Be careful for nothing” (Phil.4:6). So if there is anything at all a Christian should be worried about, it is “NOTHING”.
Worry is sinful and produces fear; it is a disease causing other ills. It is (in the words of Shakespeare) a “much Ado about nothing”, it is brooding over what may never happen, borrowing a burden from tomorrow and others who should carry it, to add to today’s burden, so worry is needless and a great time, effort, energy and life waster. Thus, avoid worry like a plague.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
Time is a very precious gift from God, it must not be wasted. Time lost by whatever means can never be regained. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come. Today is all you have, so use it maximally and optimally. Judicious use of our time makes us profitable stewards as we are going to give account to God one day. Get rid of time wasters, live one day at a time.
QUESTIONS
- What is the one thing we should worry about?
- How can one save time by getting organized?
DATE: – 14TH FEBRUARY, 2021
TOPIC: – DEALING WITH TIME WASTERS (Part 3)
BIBLE PASSAGE: – Proverbs 6:1 – 11)
MEMORY VERSE: – “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes” (Songs of Solomon 2:15).
INTRODUCTION: –Every day that breaks are a new gift from God that is why it is called “Present”. We thus, need to approach each day with all seriousness, determination and purpose. We must learn how to organize our time so that God’s will and plan for our lives can be fully accomplished within our ephemeral stay here on earth.
LESSON OUTLINES: –
B) Identifying The Time Wasters And To Overcome Them
1) Sleep: – Sleep is indeed good and it’s a gift from God (Ps.127:2). But sleep becomes sin and injurious when it is too much (Acts 20:19-21). Medical science says for a healthy living a man should have a t least six (6) hours sleep in a day. But some people can sleep for ten (10) to twelve (12) hours in a day.
If you sleep for eight (8) hours in a day, it shows you have spent one third (1/3) of the day sleeping, in a year, you must have spent four (4) months on sleep alone. By the time you are sixty (60) years, you have spent an average of twenty (20) years of your life sleeping (Prov.6:9-11; 19:15; 24:33). The Bible says it is a great waster (Prov.18:9).
2) Indiscipline: – Indiscipline or lack of self-control is a great time waster and leads to sin. Any time spent for sin or indulgence is a waste for it could have been judiciously spent on something profitable, more and honourable, which could add value to life. Indiscipline makes one spent time on gossiping or gisting or jesting about irrelevant things (Eph.5:3-4).
Indiscipline can make one a busy body going from one place to another rumour mongering, backbiting or spoiling others. Some other people can spend hours talking about politics, sport etc, worst of it all is spending hours at Newspapers’ stand analyzing and arguing (1Kgs.20:40).
When we live disciplined life, we live a profitable and productive life. So, get up and do things that need to be done when they need to be done to add value to your life.
3) Television, Radio, Social Media And Telephone: – These are all helpful tools for training and developing of minds, but we must be careful with their use. They can become activities that will distract us from important valuable things that may need to be done. Too many people can watch part 1-3 of home videos just sitting down at once. Some others can spend 4 – 6 hours on social media, internet surfing etc and get addicted to them. This is how precious time is being wasted on the altar of nothingness.
These things if they are not properly controlled can destroy relationships. Rather than creating time out with family and friends, some people spend their time in front of TV or operating phone or on social media. Those who know the value of relationship will be willing to give more time to it by switching off Television, radio, social media or close that very interesting book now and then.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
Today is unique! If has never being before and it will never be repeated. At midnight it will quietly, suddenly and totally end forever, giving way for tomorrow. But the hours between now and then are filled with great opportunities with eternal possibilities. It is only one day at a time, you can never have yesterday again because it is gone forever neither can you live tomorrow today because it has not yet and may never come. Live today, by divine enablement to the full as if it were the last on earth. Remember “there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, no wisdom in the grave whither thou goest” (Eccl.9:10). Redeem The Time!
QUESTIONS
- How can you moderate your sleep?
- How can TV/Social media affect relationship
DATE: – 21ST FEBRUARY, 2021
TOPIC: – REDEEMING THE TME (Part 1)
BIBLE PASSAGE: -Ephesians 5:13 – 17
MEMORY VERSE: -“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16)
INTRODUCTION: –One of the greatest wealth God gave to mankind is TIME. Every man, whether rich or poor, old or young, male or female has equal share – Eighty-six Thousand, four hundred (86,400) seconds daily. No one has an extra one second above other. Neither can anyone claim monopoly of time nor buy time. Though, the devil makes people behave the can “buy time”, while in actual fact, they are wasting it. Yesterday is gone and can never be regained, tomorrow is not own by anyone. Today is the time you have that is why it is called “Present”, so make the best use of it.
LESSON OUTLINES
i)Reasons For Redeeming Time
* The Time is Short (Ps.89:47): – When you see the day breaks, and various activities begin, before you know what is happening, the day is already done and night has come. “And the evening and the morning “were” another new day (Gen.1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, and 31). Truly the time is very short (1Corint.7:29).
* The Brevity of Life (Ps.90:9): – Shakespeare said in Macbeth, Out, Out, Brief candle. Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage. And then is heard no more. It is a tale told by and idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing (Macbeth, Act5, scene5).
The Holy Spirit talking about the brevity of our lives likens life in the Bible to
- A shadow (1Chro.29:15)
- A flying shuttle (Job 7:6
- A wind (Job 7:7)
- A vanishing cloud (Job 7:9)
- A swift post (i.e.) a fast messenger (Job 9:25)
- An hand breadth (Ps.39:5)
- A vanishing vapour (James 4:14)
- A grass and a flower of the field (Ps.105:15; Job 14:2)
Thus, no one should joke with time or waste it on frivolities.
* The Days Are Evil (Eph.5:16)–Jesus affirm that every day has sufficient evils in it (Mt.6:34). So redeem the time you have, lest it is taken over from you by evil.
ii) What Does It Mean To Redeem The Time
Like some Bible translator put it to “redeem the time is “making the most of every opportunity” or “to rescue time or opportunity from loss or to pay a price to recover or reclaim time from frivolities.
The complete word dictionary defines it as “by prudent and blameless conduct, gaining as much time and opportunity as possible in view of persecution and death. The word generally means to buy up, to buy all that is anywhere to be bought and not to allow the suitable moment to pass by unheeded but to make one’s own.
As Christians we are not to idly sit by and let the darkness of this world dictate events but rather to make a conscious choice to do good works and let the light of God shine through us to the world (Matt.5:14-16; Phil.2:15-16).
Even if evil personally comes upon us, or on our way we are encouraged to not respond to it in kind but instead overcome it by doing what is right and good (Rom.12:20-21)
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
Time is a gift from God; everyone is allotted to the same amount daily. But no one knows how much of it is allotted to him or her in lifetime, only God knows how much time each of us has on this earth. God wants us to live in constant awareness of that tickling clock and make the best of the time we have. Thus, we are enjoined to be careful how we live, we are to seek out and employ wisdom. We are to seize every opportunity and use it to glorify God. Our plans must align with God’s will, avoiding empty, harmful and corrupting activities like surfeiting, drunkenness etc (Lk.12:34; Rms.12:21).
QUESTIONS
- What does it mean to redeem the time?
- Why must we redeem the time?
DATE: –28TH FEBRUARY 2021
TOPIC: – REDEEMING THE TME (Part 2)
BIBLE PASSAGE: -JOB 14:1 – 15
MEMORY VERSE: – “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (Colossians 4:5)
INTRODUCTION: –We are in a time when we have so many hours in a day and limited by moment of year in a lifetime.
Time passes by moment by moment and yet “we must be gathered up again: neither doth God respect any person …….” (2Sam.14:14). No wonder David prayed “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Ps.90:12). Our years are numbered here on earth (Ps.90:9-10, Job 14:15). No one has a control over tomorrow, therefore, we should live every moment with eternity in view by stewarding our time like money – saving it, investing it profitably and using it to God’s glory, intentionally and prudently.
LESSON OUTLINES
1) Steps To Redeeming The Time
As we prepare for the coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, one of our area of our life, we need to carefully consider is our stewardship of time.
Are we putting our time to good use in view of the limited time that is left for us until the Lord return? Do we need to treat time now as a precious and scarce commodity, and make every day, every hour, every minute, every seconds count for the Lord?
A lot of us Christians have problems with our stewardship of time. We spent most of our time on our secular works and recreation that we hardly have time for spiritual development or Kingdom service.
Conversely, there are some Christians who spend too much time in too many Church activities that their secular works or home life suffers. This is not a good testimony as becomes saints.
There is a great need to know how to strike the balance, so that our time can be prudently and judiciously spent on every area of our life without any one suffering after the Bible records that our Lord did not neglect His social responsibilities while growing up. He worked as a carpenter till He was about 30 years old and was bit a burden on anyone. He spend time in personal development, acquiring enough mental and physical fit as well as social skills as He grew up (Luke 2:52). We must follow His example as well as we spend enough time also in Kingdom service (Matt.6:33).
How the do we strike the balance on the use of our time?
a) Walk Circumspectly: – We must walk carefully and discreetly looking before we take any step. We should not rush handling into things simply because every other person seemed to be rushing into it without thinking as it may turn out to be something that will lead us into spending more time on worthless things (Eph.5:15).
b) Wisdom: – We must walk with wisdom. This can be obtained from spend the studying the scriptures (Prov. 4:5 & 7, Ps.119:105).
c). Planning and Prioritizing: – We must carefully plan our day leaning on the Holy Spirit (Prov. 3:3-6). We then prioritize our activities carefully (Eccl.3:1-8).
d) Learn to say “NO” without feeling guilty especially to the person you find to say ‘no’ to which may be yourself. We often have too little time because we give in easily to ourselves and we refuse to let go of all extra things we indulge ourselves. We must be determined to refuse those activities and get involved in those activities that are more profitable (Eccl.12:1; 1Corint.7:31).
e) Do not delay what you can do now to another time. Procrastination is a thief of time (Eccl.9:10).
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
Until we begin to see ourselves as stewards of our time and that we will give account on the way we spend it someday. We may not see the importance of redeeming the time God give to us. Remember, both old and young, rich and poor, small and great have equal time daily – 24 Hours!
QUESTIONS
- How do we redeem time?
- What can the knowledge of stewardship of our time help us do?