525,600 Minutes

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525,600 Minutes Blank Outline 525,600 Filled In Outline Bible Verses – Ephesians 5:15-20 Scroll to 28:30 for beginning of sermon Ephesians 5:15-20 We’re going to read some Scripture. And this is Ephesians chapter 5, verses 15 through 20. Here’s part of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. He says, Be very careful, then, how you live, not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms and hymns and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. But so, we want to think about this morning and we want to think about what can we do with those 525,600 minutes? And how can we invest our time and make wise use of that time? And certainly, the suggestion, the seasons of love is a biblical suggestion. John 1:34, and 35, by this all men will know that we’re just disciples by how we love one another. But this morning we want to think about making the most of our 525,600 minutes. So, here’s our main truth, and then we’re going to detail this. Here’s what we want to think about this morning from Scripture. It’s going to give us some guidance here. Main Truth Because life is brief, we must make the most of every opportunity that God gives us. Because life is brief, we must make the most of every season or opportunity that God gives us. There’s a lot of Scripture verses that back that up. I think of Psalm 90. We studied Psalm 90 about three months ago, a Psalm of Moses. It’s the oldest Psalm written during the wilderness wanderings when Moses and the Israelites were surrounded by death every day. And Moses writes Psalm 90, and he reminds us in verse 10, our days may come to 70 years or 80 if our strength endures, yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass and fly away. Now, if you’re over 40 this morning, you know the truth of that, that life goes by so very, very fast. Life is brief. In fact, James says, what is our life? It’s a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. So, James compares our life here on planet earth to like that exhale of breath that comes out on a cold winter morning. It’s there for a moment, and then it’s gone. And so, life is short, and life is brief. And because of that, God wants us to make the most of every opportunity. That’s what Ephesians 5, the Scripture passage that we read this morning as our Scripture reading. Be very careful how you live, not as unwise but as wise. What’s wise living look like? The King James Version says, redeem the time. The NIV gives a more accurate translation, making the most of every opportunity. The word there for time or opportunity is not the Greek word Chronos. That is chronological time, it’s the word Kairos, which means a season or an opportunity in your life, a window of opportunity. And Paul says we need to make the most of every opportunity. And so, Moses in his Psalm 90 at the end of his psalm makes a prayer. Because life is short, Moses prays, Lord, teach us to number our days so that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Lord, teach us to know that life is short and help us to live wisely. Someone has paraphrased that to say, Lord, help us to count our days so we can make our days count. So, this morning we want to think about how we can do that. I’m not going to talk about New Year’s resolutions. I don’t know if you make New Year’s resolutions. I don’t. The studies say most New Year’s resolutions last about six weeks. But I also think it is important in times in our life, and certainly the end of the year, the beginning of a new year, is a good opportunity what to take some inventory in our lives, and to think about what are our

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