"Someone recently sent me an email of things God won’t ask you on Judgment Day:
God won't ask what kind of car you drove. He'll ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation.
God won't ask the square footage of your house, He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.
God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet. He'll ask how many you helped to clothe.
God won't ask what your highest salary was. He'll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.
God won't ask what your job title was. He'll ask if you performed your job to the best of your ability.
God won't ask how many friends you had. He'll ask how many people you were a friend to.
God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived, He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.
I like that list because it emphasizes that investing time in people is the way to redeem the time.
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"Several years ago, two ladies became so focused on the negatives of their workplace, and thus unhappy with their jobs at Western Union, that they secretly made a plan to both quit on a certain day.
Perhaps to make the management realize what good employees they had lost, the two women dressed in their best clothes and went to work an hour early the last day. They cleaned up the kitchen and made coffee for their coworkers who they greeted that day with unusual enthusiasm and friendliness. As the day progressed, their coworkers noticed how well they treated the customers who also were delighted with the ladies attention.
At the end of the day, instead of quitting, the two ladies decided this was the best job they had ever had and they had better hold on to it.
These ladies discovered that feelings follow action. As they obeyed the Scriptural command to work diligently they found their attitude changed and their work became enjoyable when they learned to redeem the time.
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"Is it ever grammatically correct to say, “I is”? Think about it. You probably said no. But are you sure it is never grammatically correct? Well, I is the 9th letter of the alphabet.
You were probably wrong about that even though you thought you were right. And if you could be wrong about one thing it is possible you could be wrong about something else, such as the way you’re planning to spend your time.
Lots of people go through life every day doing the same thing they did the day before, without ever really considering whether what they are doing is their best possible use of time. The Bible often encourages us to strive to be our best for God.
Why not stop right now and consider your plans for your remaining hours today. Is there any way you could change those plans to include something that might help someone go to Heaven? Is so, that’s the way you’ll redeem the time.
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"In Matthew 12.36 Jesus warned that we would give account of “every idle word” in the Day of Judgment. In other words, I will someday have to stand in front of God and explain to Him why I chose to do what I did with my time.
But what exactly are idle words, or idle uses of time? Think of it this way: What is your car doing when it is idling? It is wasting energy. It’s consuming resources without producing anything. It is not achieving it’s full potential. It is not really doing what its maker created it to do.
Along with that, I think it would be safe to safe to say we will also give an account of every idle silence when we should have been giving useful words but didn’t.
The coming judgment is a fearful thought for those whose days are spent in idleness. But the judgment can become an anticipated time of reward for those who are right with God and who choose to redeem the time.
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