Today's Devotional is written by Pastor Roy Summers
Old World Missionaries are Different
There is no doubt that life on a difficult mission field is (very) different from a comfortable life in England's Green and Pleasant land.
For one thing, power shortages are common. No-one bats an eyelid when the preacher and his translator are suddenly speaking without the aid of PA. It's normal. The sermon goes on, the people scarce notice.
For another thing, events English folk regard as hallowed, pass by barely noticed. I remember some years ago, a westerner being horrified when their boss refused to give them a day off because it was their birthday, as if birthdays were holy days to be honoured by all.
Christians miss home groups - and even fixed serving events - because it is their birthday! On the mission field saving souls, discipling believers and setting an example to young believers comes first and all other self-indulgent events take a firm second place. Can you imagine Jesus taking a day off because it was his birthday? I somehow doubt it. "I can't heal or preach today because I've turned 32 and I want to spend the whole day on myself?!"
The use of time is a third big difference between many missionaries and easy-going western Christians. With so much to do, missionaries - or at least the old world variety - prize each God-given moment.
Our memory verse today encourages us to treat time as a precious commodity;
"Teach us to number our days aright that we may gain a heart of wisdom." (Psalm 90:12)
The precious Gift of Time
Time, like all other assets we enjoy is a precious gift from God. In Psalm 90, the aged Moses is reflecting on his long life. Its a sober reflection. And in verse twelve he prays for wisdom to number his days aright. Other translations read:
"Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should." (Living Bible)
"Teach us how short our lives really are so that we may be wise." (New Century Bible)
The idea is that as we count how many days our lives possess and thereby see how few they are we will use each one of them more wisely.
It is possible to waste our lives
It is eminently possible to waste our lives in frivolity and useless pursuits. To be sure, we need to rest, but the Gospel and the example of Jesus should shape our use of time.
We are prone to waste time especially when we are young. Pink Floyd put it this way in their track Time:
Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day
You fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way
Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town
Waiting for someone or something to show you the way
Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain
You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today
And then one day you find ten years have got behind you
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun
When Richard Wurmbrand was in prison both under the Nazis and then the communists he noted how prisoners wasted their time. “As a rule, prisoners spend their time in trifles," he wrote, "if they are not compelled to do slave labour, they
tell each other stories and jokes. Sometimes they quarrel. They waste their
time, just as some millioanires do.”
By contrast Wurmbrand was convinced that he was to use his time well in prison just as he would outside of it. So he dedicated his time to bringing souls to Christ by tapping the gospel
through the wall, composing memorised sermons and praying.
The Wisdom of Well-used Time
Moses says that regular reflection on the short length of our lives will help us to be wise in the way we use time. If a man does not know how much money he has in the bank he might easily squander it foolishly.
If we never pause to consider how few years we have left, we could easily waste the remainder of our lives.
If we consider how few are the years that lie ahead, we will be careful about our use of every moment of each day. We will be careful to make it count. We will be careful to lay up treasures in heaven.
Summing it all Up
Reader, have you ever thought of time as a precious gift from the Lord? One day the Lord Jesus will ask you "How did you use your little time?" Did you squander it on yourself? Or did you use it in the great cause of God's kingdom?"
Jesus set the golden standard:
"Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written." (John 21:25)
May the Lord help us to count the few days that lie ahead of us so that we may be wise in the way we use each precious moment of the day.
A SONG FOR THE DAY
Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;
Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.
Make friends of God’s children, help those who are weak,
Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.
Take time to be holy, the world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone.
By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.
Take time to be holy, let Him be thy Guide;
And run not before Him, whatever betide.
In joy or in sorrow, still follow the Lord,
And, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word.
Each thought and each motive beneath His control.
Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love,
Thou soon shalt be fitted for service above.
William Longtsaff
Sing along with a congregation HERE.
A PRAYER FOR THE DAY
Our loving Father in heaven,
We worship you, we worship your Son and we worship the Holy Spirit, immortal, invisible, God only wise.
You rise above time and to you one day is as a thousand years. But for us, our days are three-score and ten.
Teach us to number our days, to realise how short life is, and to live every moment for your glory and praise.
May we not live in future regret for the indulgent and selfish way we lived our lives, but may we give ourselves every day to you and the service of your eternal kingdom.
In the name of Jesus we pray these things,
Amen
Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash
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