Taking Time To Grow Spiritually
Luke 8:14

A. Man named Hummel wrote a book on time management for Christians called “Tyranny of
the Urgent.” The message of the book was: It is dangerous to let the “urgent” crowd the
“important” out of our lives.
We live in a busy, fast-paced world. Our time is consumed before we know it. Time is at a premium. Time is what life is made of. If I give you 15 minutes of my time I’ve given you 15 minutes of my life. When I give you 15 minutes of my life that 15 minutes is gone forever. I cannot redeem even one second of it.
a. My time and my life are the most important and most valuable things I possess. They are priceless. My time and my life are not cheap and I will not squander them for a pittance.
Of all people Christians should understand the priceless value of life and time.
(1) Be careful to spend our time in those activities God has designed for our personal
spiritual growth. The easiest way to put you soul in serious danger is to blow all
our time and your life on things of this world.
(a) How much time to you spend in prayer, Bible study, and meditation?
If you spend 3 or 4 hours a day watching TV and no time praying, studying - What does that say about your spiritual priorities.
It takes time to grow spiritually. It takes “quantity” time as well as “quality” time.
At the very least, spiritual growth requires spending time in God’s word.
1 Pet. 2:2, says, “We are to desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”
2 Tim 2:15.
1 Peter 3:15.
That cannot be done “on the run” — even in this day of the Walkman.
Time, like money, must be managed well to achieve proper spiritual goals.
The Bible teaches that time and money are things over which we must exercise good stewardship — and sometimes we fail to do that.
Eph 5:15?18. Understand and do God’s will.
Bad stewards squander God’s blessings and gifts of time, possessions, ability.
Lk. 15:11-13, teaches this important principle. Prodigal son wasted what he had been given in life.
Vs. 13, “He wasted his possessions with prodigal living.”
“Prodigal” means recklessly wasteful. From Latin prodigere (“to squander”).
The Prodigal Son wasted, squandered what he had been given in life.
2. One of the worst habits we can get into is Over-Commitment.
(1) Attracted to activities and things. Get involved and thing these things are a must and I just cannot live without them.
(1) Get over committed and over extended to the point we have no time or resources to give doing or accomplishing what God requires.
(1) Our souls and the Church begin to suffer.
(2) How many of your activities compete with your commitment to this congregation?
(3) We may need to “reallocate our resources” in the use of our time.
(2) As parents, how often do your children see you in quiet devotion unto God?
(1) How often do you being your family together in time that is devoted only to Bible

study, prayer and spiritual growth?
(2) One of the tragedies of life is not taking time for “maintenance.”
(3) Of all people farmers, ranchers should know it is not possible to increase productivity by diminishing maintenance time.
(4) Yet we live as if we think we can go on indefinitely without spending time alone with God. Eph. 6:4, “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.”
(3) Don’t let your spiritual failures, hypocrisy and “Fox Fire” religion cause your children to turn away from the Lord.
(1) Fox fire is a light that glows in the dark and it’s caused by dead and decayed matter that cause phosphorus to glow in the dark..
(2) Matt 5:16. Fox fire is a poor substitute for the real thing, and your children and others around you can tell the difference.
(2) 1 Peter 2:21, “Jesus died and left us example, that you should follow His steps.”
(1) Example of making time for private time alone with God.
(1) Mk. 6:30-32. Made time to be alone with God.
(2) Matt. 14:13-14, 22-25. Jesus spent all day teaching and feeding five thousand, and then He prayed most of the night.
(3) Mk. 1:35.
(4) Lk. 6:12.
(2) Beautiful song by W.D. Longstaff, “Take Time To Be Holy.” As a constant reminder we should sing that every time we assemble together.
(1) “Speak oft with thy Lord.” Time for prayer.
(2) “Feed on His word.” Time for study.
(3) “Spend much time in secret with Jesus alone.” Time for meditation, contemplation, introspection.
(4) “Be calm in thy soul.” Time to enjoy God’s blessings, praise and thank Him.
(3) Do what it takes— before it is too late—to put a calm center of spiritual devotion in the eye of the storm that is our lives.
(1) Don’t wait, hesitate, procrastinate—“Redeem the time for the days are evil.”
(2) Acts 20:32.

Spur - 10/26/2003 am