the basic message #E209
10/30/03
We Americans are world-famous for our hectic, go-go-go lifestyles. Time management seminars are commonplace these days, and very few people aren't concerned to some degree about using their time wisely. A man once lived (and still does) about 2000 years ago that had a huge job to accomplish, and he only had about 3 years to complete his task. I'm talking about Jesus Christ, of course, but maybe you've never considered him to be the master of time management. Today I'll outline why I think he may have used his time more efficiently than anyone before or after his existence.
Sense of purpose- "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." (Matthew 4:17) He had a clear purpose- to bring salvation to the world, but he kept his mission simple and straightforward. He never allowed himself to be side-tracked from his intended goal, although he made himself available to the people he was trying to reach.
Delegation- "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Matthew 4:19) Jesus knew that although he was God, he needed some help in human form to accomplish his task. Could God simply snap his fingers and bring salvation to the world? Sure, but would we remember the finger-snapping 2000 years later like we remember the man on the cross? Jesus delegated some of his non-Godly work to people like you and I, and he still does today. Although he assembled a motley crew, he knew they were much like the people he was trying to reach. Being able to select the right people to help us is a major key to saving us time.
Peace- "But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:44-45) Being able to get up each morning without facing ongoing grudges with others certainly conserves precious energy to get the more important duties done.
Priorities- "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?" (Matthew 6:25) How many of us get totally bogged-down in the worries of the day over things of little relative importance?
Knowing when to let go- But Jesus told him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead." (Matthew 8:22) Sometimes we just don't know when to move on. We often cling to dead ideas and dead opinions that need to be left behind. Just because Grandpa flew the rebel flag doesn't mean every generation afterward has to follow his example.
Focus- "For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." (Matthew 9:13) Many of us get up in the morning without any real sense of what we're trying to accomplish. Jesus knew who he was trying to reach and what he would do when he found them.
Understand the needs of others- Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way." (Matthew 15:32) Sometimes we get so focused on our agenda that we forget that other people have needs too. Jesus could have easily taken the attitude, "Hey, I'm the Son of God- they should be honored to hear me speak. Let them go find their own food!" No, Jesus knew that his teaching would be diminished in power if the people became physically weak on their way back home. We need to keep our eye on the bottom line, but understand there is more to life than the bottom line.
Limit your activities to the important- "The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" Jesus stopped and called them. "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked. "Lord," they answered, "we want our sight." Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him. (Matthew 20:31-34) Does this mean that you should only be doing high-profile jobs? Not at all, but we should try to use our time doing the truly important things in life in lieu of what we think are important things.
Be friendly- "Put your sword back in its place," Jesus said to him, "for all who draw the sword will die by the sword." (Matthew 26:52) No, I'm not suggesting that some of us might be killing people who get in our way, but sometimes we certainly go looking for battles that might be figments of our imagination. I speak from experience on this one. Neither am I suggesting that we simply knuckle-under to people who will steam-roller us if we aren't stronger than them. The old saying, "pick your battles carefully" would apply here.
I could go on, but I think you get the idea. Whether Jesus was attending a wedding or just visiting with people, he accomplished a tremendous amount of things in 3 short years. Heck, 4 years in Washington usually doesn't get too much of anything accomplished.