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weekly sermon 10-4-09
The Time Of Your Life
Before I get into this message, I want to first apologize for not being here last week. I had some sort of stomach virus, that our youngest son now has, and was unable to create a new message. Thank you all for your prayers, support, and understanding.
Now let us dive into this weeks message, the time of your life. This message will more than likely have a completely different twist than most of you all will be thinking. When most folks hear that cliché, "time of your life", they think about the joyous and fun times they have had in their lives. This weeks message will actually focus on the "time" of your life, not the times you have had in your life.
It does not matter what is happening in our lives, there is a time and place for that particular happening. Let us look at this "time" from several different angles. Farmers know that at a certain time of year they plant certain crops. Planting a certain crop in the wrong season will cause that particular crop to fail. This is the basic principle for any and everything that happens in our lives as well. There is a particular season for everything that happens in our lives. Some animals understand that certain seasons they are to eat more than others so when it comes the "season" to hibernate, they will be well fed during that time. Many fowl understand that during a certain season they will fly south to exempt themselves from the cold weather. Finally, with us humans, certain people come into our lives and exit our lives at a time that is usually not known to us, but it plays an essential part in our lives at the time. Basically, people come and people go, depending on what is happening in our lives at the time.
Turn with me to Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, "To every [thing there is] a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: (2)A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up [that which is] planted; (3)A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; (4)A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; (5)A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; (6)A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; (7)A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; (8)A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."
As we can see from the scripture above, there is a time, or a season, for everything that happens, whether it be to us, or to the world around us. There is not only a season for everything that happens, but a season for every purpose under Heaven. If we really want to understand the reason for the things that are happening around us, then we can always refer back to these scriptures. This one particular passage of scripture explains every question we have ever asked. Why is there hate? Why is there love? Why do we follow God? Why is there death? Why is there sickness? Why do we cry? Why do we love? Why do we sin? Why do we stray? Why do we have peace at times and war at others?
Each of these questions asked, can be understood if we understand the very first few words of this passage. "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the Heaven", but that is actually a different message. I have kind of went off the path of the message I wanted to bring this week, but I did that for the purpose of making us understand the reason for time.
Time is something, as we have all heard, that is taken for granted, but I really want us to understand the true value of time. According to the National Vital Statics Report published in 2007, the average life expectancy, overall, is 78 years, from birth to death. I want us to break this down, Biblically, to understand where I am going with this. Turn with me, if you will, to 2 Peter 3:8, "But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day [is] with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."
Notice what it really says here, that one day equals a thousand years and a thousand years is equal to one day, to God. If we really take a look at this, we will find that for every hour of every day that we live, we are alive for 41.67 years, in God's eyes. This means that in 2 hours we have already outlived the average life expectancy of 78 years in the eyes of God.
We are like goldfish for God. What I mean is, in our lives, if we get a goldfish, as we have noticed, it will only live for a few days and then it passes away. You can then figure that if we live, on the average, of 78 years, in the eyes of God, that is but a few minutes, if a day is equal to a thousand years to God.
It has been said that first impressions are lasting impressions. You only have a few minutes, in the eyes of God, as a creature on this earth. What, or how, are you going to spend those few minutes. Yes, I understand that in our finite minds, we believe we have all the time in the world. That 78 years seems like forever to us in our minds, but as I have just shown, it is only a few minutes in the eyes of God. How will you make your first and only impression to God?
There are actually two things I want us to think about here. First is what we have been discussing, the value of our time and how we spend the few minutes, in the eyes of God, that we have here. Secondly, I want us know that, no matter what time, or season, we are in, that season will pass. We have talked for the past several weeks about the economy and how it has, will, or is affecting our lives. This is but a season that will soon pass and turn to the next season in our lives. We may be experiencing difficult, sad, terrible, or even happy times, but as it has been said, those times will pass. No matter how bad or how good our lives are at this time, it will pass.
Let us reflect on the time of our lives. We can see that we are only here but a few minutes, to make our impression. We also have seen that no matter what is happening in our lives, that season will change and so will the things happening in our lives. Now let us also remember one thing, when you plant a crop, it takes time for that crop to grow to maturity where it can be harvested. This tells us that no matter what is happening in our lives, if we want it to change to a different time, we must give that particular season time to pass. A season does not pass just because we want it to pass. A season is exactly that, a season. We may not like the cold weather and wish it would go away, but all our wishing does not make the season pass any faster. That particular season passes when it is suppose to pass. Just like that season, so do the things happening in our lives pass when they are suppose to pass.
How will you dress for the different seasons in your life? Will you clothe yourself properly for the specific season in which you are currently involved? How will you make the most of the few minutes you have here on earth? Will the few minutes of your life, in God's eyes, make the lasting impression you want it to make? Will that impression take your soul to Heaven? If you are not sure if you are having the "time of your life", then all you have to do is say a simple prayer with me.
Say this simple prayer with me, Dear Lord, I want you to be the Lord over my life, forgive me of my sins, and give me the gift of everlasting life. Amen.
If you have said this simple prayer, then we believe that you have received salvation. We would love to rejoice with you, so please drop us a note, in our link, to let us know and confess Jesus before man, so that we may send you a few things that we hope will help you in your new Christian walk.
With Love in Christ,
Pastor Stone
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