Make the Most of Your Time

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesians 5:15-16

How much time do you spend in the car on an average day? How about over the course of a week? Now, imagine what you could accomplish with that time if there was a way to make the best use of it. Within the past three weeks I have taken two major road trips that required me to spend between 45 and 50 hours travelling in total. That's a lot of travel time for a guy who's morning commute consists of walking across the parking lot! So I was intent on trying to find someway to redeem this time.

Ephesians 5 reminds us that it's important for us to make the most of the time we have been given on earth. There is so much evil around us, that it can be very hard to know God's will for our lives and to think clearly about the decisions we face on a daily basis. We should take every opportunity we are given to redeem time that would otherwise be wasted and use it to fill our hearts and heads with a deeper understanding of God's Word. That's why I settled on finding a way to listen to sermons and to the Word on my road trips.

Almost all church websites (and certainly those run by the well-known pastors of our time) offer downloadable audio recordings of their sermons. Many even offer the sermons via podcast from week-to-week. There are also free Bible apps for your smart phone that not only offer different versions of the Bible but even come with audio versions of the Word as well. If your car stereo has a way to plug-in your mp3 player, then you can listen to sermons or an audio Bible from your mp3 player through your car stereo with ease. But not all of us have the newest features on our cars. On the longest of my two road trips my car was not equipped with this technology, so I compromised. They make portable speakers that plug into mp3 players which get pretty loud. I borrowed one of these from a friend, and it worked well enough that I have since gotten one of my own. It has already gotten good use.

Imagine listening to part of a sermon each morning on your way into work. How might that change your outlook on the day? Imagine listening to the Bible with your children as you drive them to school in the morning. How much of an impact could that have on their lives over the course of many weeks, months, and years? Redeeming our time in the car is only one example of how we can make the most of the time God has given us. Perhaps the Lord is speaking to you about another way you need to make the most of your time. If He is, then listen to Him. What is important is taking small steps to get more of the Word in your life daily.

For further listening...

• The Gospel, Possessions, & Prosperity- This is a thought-provoking and thorough survey of what the entire Bible has to say about money and wealth taught by David Platt at The Church at Brook Hills. It is a four session study. Each session is an hour. I am currently on session 3 and loving it. I highly recommend it.