WASTE NOT YOUR SHORT LIFE!

EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY JUNE 4, 2020.

SUBJECT: WASTE NOT YOUR SHORT LIFE!

Memory verse: “Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow." (Psalm 144 vs 4.)

READ: Psalm 39 vs 4 - 6:

39:4: “LORD, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am.

39:5: Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my age is as nothing before You; Certainly every man at his best state is but vapor.

39:6: Surely every man walks about like a shadow; surely they busy themselves in vain; he heaps up riches, and does not know who will gather them.

INTIMATION: 

Life is short, it is like a breath, and our days are like a passing shadow. The apostle James puts it this way, “Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (James 4 vs 14). And because life is short, a good, proper, and adequate use of it should be everyone’s target. The clarity of the shortness of man’s life is enunciated in Job’s despondent prayer:

“Man who is born of woman is of few days and full of trouble. He comes forth like a flower and fades away; he flees like a shadow and does not continue. Since his days are determined, the number of his months is with You; You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass. But man dies and is laid away; indeed he breathes his last and where is he? As water disappears from the sea, and a river becomes parched and dries up, So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, they will not awake nor roused from their sleep.” (Job 14 vs 1 - 2; 5; 10 - 12.)

What, then is the good, proper, and adequate use of your short life? It’s living for God—living by the word of God—the will of God for you. Consequently, you should live for God while  you have the time. Don’t waste your life by selecting an inferior purpose that has no lasting value. Only God can make your life worthwhile, purposeful, and meaningful. 

Life is short no matter how many years we live. Don’t be deceived into thinking that you have lots of remaining time to do what you please now, and later live for Christ, thereby oscillating between life in Christ and worldly pleasures. Because life is short, do what is truly important; Live for God today! Then, no matter when your life ends, you would have fulfilled God’s plan for you. You must not put it off for what you may consider a better day. Now is the time! Start with surrendering your life to Christ. 

Realizing that life is short, helps us use the little time we have more wisely and for eternal good. Take time to number your days by asking, “What do I want to see happen in my life before I die? What small step could I take toward that purpose today Ironically, people spend so much time securing their lives on earth but take little or no thought about where they will spend eternity. The Scripture is very clear on the fact that amassing riches and busily accomplishing worldly tasks that would have no value in eternity. Unfortunately, many people don’t understand that their only hope is in the Lord.

Many are blindfolded in the deceitfulness of worldly pleasures, and standards. Worldly standards use honor, power, wealth, or prestige to measure people. And the worldly thinking is that such people are really getting ahead in life. But on God’s scales, these people are a puff of air. Worldly standards and pleasures are insignificant in God’s standard of measurement. What, then, can tilt the scales when God weighs us? It’s trusting God and working for Him. Wealth, honor, power, or prestige add nothing in our value in God’s eyes, only the faithful work we do for Him has eternal value.

Many people spend all their energy seeking pleasure. Jesus said, however, that worldliness, which is centered on possessions, position, or power, is ultimately worthless; “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mark 8 vs 36 - 37.)  Whatever you have on earth is only temporary. It cannot be exchanged for your soul. If you work hard at getting what you want, you might eventually have a pleasurable life, but in the end you will find it hollow and empty. Are you willing to make the pursuit of God more important than the selfish pursuits? Follow Jesus, and you will know what it means to live abundantly now and to have eternal life as well. 

Possessions, and pleasures are good only if gotten within the ambit of God’s law and will. It’s good to have them because they are good in themselves, but they can disappoint us if we leave God out of them. There is no point doing anything in your short life as though God does not exist because the future is in His hands. Nothing—not even life itself—can compare to what we gain with Christ. Jesus wants us to choose to follow Him rather than to lead a life of sin and self-satisfaction. He wants us to stop trying to control our own destiny and to let Him direct us. This makes good sense because, as the Creator, He knows better than the created on what real life is all about. Jesus asks us only to lose our self-centered determination to be in charge of our lives; He asks for our submission, not self-hatred. 

Prayer: Abba Father, give me the grace to live for You in all things in my short span of life on earth, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!