"My wife and I were talking recently about things we could remember from our very early childhood. We discovered that both of us remembered in detail the night lights from when we were very small. Mine was a little round orange light that glowed in the hallway just outside my bedroom door.
Maybe you remember your childhood night light as well. I think we remember them because as a child, we needed some assurance there were no monsters lurking under the bed and the nightlight provided that comfort. Now that I’m an adult I still use a night light, not to expose monsters, but to keep from banging my toe in the middle of the night.
Jesus said His followers were to be the light of the world. In a world that is growing spiritually darker by the day, Christians need to spend time in light producing ways. The world is stumbling, and falling. Let’s do something today to shine a light for them. Let’s redeem the time.
"
"The reason many people will never become successful is because they continually trade what they really want for what they want right now.
For example, most people want to be healthy. No one sets a goal to grow sick and weak. Yet many people do grow sick and weak before their time because of poor choices driven by immediate gratification. Cheeseburgers taste better than Brussel sprouts. It gives quicker thrills to play a video game than to visit the gym.
Spiritual growth is often stunted as well by the desire for short term gratification. It’s always going to be easier to snuggle in warm blanket than to get up and read your Bible on a cold morning. Feasting is a lot more fun in the short term than fasting.
But at the end of your life, what will be the result of a life spent in short term pleasures at the cost of deeper things. Purpose in your heart today to delay gratification whenever it helps you redeem the time.
"
"The more you think about time and eternity, the more you come to the realization that eternity points us to God. It is a concept that cannot be fully comprehended with the mind, just as God cannot be fully comprehended with the mind. Instead it must be understood with the heart. In fact the Bible clearly states in Ecclesiastes 3:11 that God has put eternity in the hearts of people.
Yet, the Bible also states, “The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” Notice the Scripture doesn’t say “in his head” but rather, “in his heart.” That is because he has hardened his heart in such a way as to override the reality of eternity which God originally placed there.
You are probably not a professing atheist. But to the degree your daily use of time ignores the reality of eternity, you are a practicing atheist. That is why focusing your heart on eternity is the ultimate motivation to redeem the time.
"
"ROI. Those are three very important letters. They stand for “Return on Investment.” It’s a financial tool used to evaluate different investment possibilities and comparing which choice will yield the greatest result. If one investment offers a 5% ROI and another offers a 10% ROI with the same amount of risk, the smart money goes with the 10% option.
But ROI isn’t just a financial principle. God wants us to apply the ROI principle to our most valuable resource, our time. The possibilities for investing our time are just as wide-ranging as those for investing our money.
Scripture teaches that someday we will give an account for all we’ve been given. As you consider the possible ways to spend your time between now and bedtime tonight, consider which options would produce the greatest ROI in light of what God has called you to do.
Thinking of time like we think of money, and searching for the greatest ROI is good strategy for redeeming the time.
"