"A sloth moves so slowly that it grows fungus in its fur. A slug moves only 3 yards every eight hours. Perhaps that is where we get the words slothful and sluggish.
You’ll notice people who accomplish great things for the Lord generally are people who move at a brisk and steady pace. Those who whine and complain about how bad their luck has been and how unfair life is, generally resemble the sloth when it comes to their work habits.
Part of redeeming the time is learning to pick up our pace and work quickly. Most of us work to only a fraction of our capabilities. Yet the Bible warns us continually through the book of Proverbs about the dangers of slothfulness and being a sluggard. The sluggard places no value on time. He sees nothing wrong with letting it pass unimproved.
Let’s not follow the pattern of the sloth and sluggard. Let’s get busy right now and redeem the time!
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"An illustration I recently came across from a sales trainer read:
For those who are reluctant to ask for the order more than once or twice for fear of coming across as ""high pressure"" salespeople, think about this: When baseball pitchers reject a ball, the ball is returned to the umpire who puts it in his pouch with other baseballs. Later that same ball will be given to the pitcher. Seldom, if ever, is the same ball rejected twice. The prospect will look at your offer in a different light the second, third, fourth, and even fifth time. Just as the professional baseball umpire offers the same baseball to the pitcher, so must the professional salesperson offer the same product to the prospect several times.
Now, consider the implication of that article for Christians. We may share our faith with someone and they reject it the first time. But remember, doing what God calls you to do until the goal is achieved will redeem the time.
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"Is it possible to redeem the time while you’re sleeping? It sure is! Here’s how.
Have you ever had a dream about something you were thinking of just before you went to sleep? Maybe when you were a child you saw something scary just before bedtime and you woke up in the night terrified. That’s because the mind will tend to meditate through the night on whatever thoughts we give it just before going to sleep.
In Psalm 16 David says, “I will bless the Lord who hath given me counsel: my reins also shall instruct me in the night seasons.” The “reigns” he spoke of here are like reigns of a horse which give it guidance. By meditating on God’s word as we fall asleep, we are giving God the reigns of our mind by thinking His thoughts through the night seasons.
Imagine the effect of God’s word penetrating your mind eight hours each night. That would be a sure way to redeem the time.
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"Here’s a joke your children will enjoy. What do you call 10 rabbits standing in a row and walking backwards? The answer- A receding hare line. As one man put it, when we get old some hairs turn gray but others just turn loose.
Those receding hair lines are reminders of something else that is receding - your time. Just as our facial features and hairlines gradually change, so our lives are gradually slipping by. The face you saw in the mirror this morning is just a little older than it was yesterday.
Time is the one force we cannot escape. We are all gradually moving toward the end of our earthly life. For some people that’s a discouraging thought. But for the Christian those gray hairs are reminders that we are getting closer to home and the rewards God has prepared for us there.
So don’t let a receding hair line worry you and make you fret. Learn to use it as a daily reminder to redeem the time.
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