The Talent of
Time
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There Should Be Time
Spent in Planning
As far as possible, it
is well to consider what is to be
accomplished through the day. Make a
memorandum of the different duties
that await your attention, and set
apart a certain time for doing of
each duty. Let everything be done
with thoroughness, neatness, and
dispatch… Give yourself a number
of minutes to do the work, and do not
stop to read papers and books that
take your eye, but say to yourself,
No, I have just so many minutes in
which to do my work, and I must
accomplish my task in the given time.
Let those who are
naturally slow of movement seek to
become active, quick, energetic,
remembering the words of the apostle,
“Never be lacking in zeal, but
keep your spiritual fervor, serving
the Lord.” Romans 12:11…
But if you are under the control of
slow, dilatory movements, if your
habits are of lazy order, you will
make a long job out of a short one;
and it is the duty of those who are
slow to reform and to become more
expeditious. If they will, they can
overcome their fussy, lingering
habits. In washing dishes they may be
careful and at the same time do quick
work. Exercise the will to this end,
and the hands will move with
dispatch. It is the duty of every
Christian to acquire habits of order,
thoroughness, and dispatch. There is
no excuse for slow bungling at work
of any character…. The one who
is slow and who works at a
disadvantage should realize that
these are faults to be corrected. He
needs to exercise his mind in
planning how to use the time as to
secure the best results. By tact and
method, some will accomplish as much
in five hours as others do n
ten…By their slow, dilatory ways
they make mush work out of very
little. But all who will must
overcome these trifles, lingering
habits. In their work let them have a
definite aim. Decide how long a time
is required for a given task, and
then bend every effort toward
accomplishing the work in the given
time. The exercise of the will power
will make the hands move quickly.
Gather and Use the
Fragments of Time
A few minutes here and
a few minutes there, that might be
frittered away in aimless talk; the
morning hours so often wasted in bed;
the time spent traveling on trams or
railway cars, or waiting at the
station; the moments of waiting for
meals, waiting for those who are
tardy in keeping their appointment
– if a book were kept in hand,
and these fragments of time were
improved in study, reading, or
careful thought, what might not be
accomplished. A resolute purpose,
persistent industry, and careful
economy of time will enable men to
acquire knowledge and mental
discipline which will qualify them
for almost any position of influence
and usefulness.
Where there is
abundance of idleness, Satan works
with his temptations to spoil life
and character. If youth are not
trained to useful labor, whether they
are rich or poor, they are in peril;
for Satan will find employment for
them after his own order. The youth
who are not barricaded with principle
do not regard time as a precious
treasure, a trust from God, for which
every human being must give an
account. Children should be educated
to make the best use of their time,
to be helpful to father and mother,
to be self-reliant. They should not
be allowed to consider themselves
above doing any kind of labor that is
necessary. The value of time is
beyond computation. Time squandered
can never be recovered…. The
improvement of wasted moments is a
treasure.
Jesus taught all to
look upon themselves as endowed with
precious talents, which rightly
employed would secure for them
eternal riches. Jesus weeded all
vanity from life, and His own example
taught that every moment of time is
fraught with eternal results; that it
is to be cherished as a treasure, and
to be employed for holy purposes.
Time Spent in Labor is
Noble
Parents should devise
ways and means for keeping their
children usefully busy. Let the
children be given little pieces of
land to cultivate, that they may have
something to give as a freewill
offering. Allow them to help you in
every way they can, and show them
that you appreciate their help. Let
them feel that they are part of the
family firm. Teach them to use their
minds as much as possible, so to plan
their work that they may do it
quickly and thoroughly. Teach them to
be prompt and energetic in their
work, to economize time so that no
minutes may be lost in their allotted
hours of work. Let us teach the
little ones to help us while their
hands are small and their strength
slight. Let us impress upon their
minds the fact that labor is noble,
that it was ordained to man of
heaven, that it was enjoined upon
Adam and Eve in Eden, as an essential
to the healthy development of mind
and body. Let us teach them that
innocent pleasure is never half so
satisfying as when it follows active
industry.
Understanding the
importance of the above use of our
time lays a good foundation for
allowing us to make the most use of
our time and allows time to do the
most critical things with our time.
Our Responsibility to
the Work in the World
My brothers, the Lord
is coming, and we need to use every
energy to the accomplishment of the
world before us. I appeal to you to
give yourselves wholly to the work.
Christ gave His time, His soul, His
strength, to labor for the benefit
and blessing of humanity. Let us give
while we have the power. Let us do
while we have the strength. Let us
work while it is day. Let us devote
our time and means to the service of
God, that we may have His approval,
and receive His reward.
All the people should
have interest in His cause…. God
requires those who have health and
strength of body, to do what they
can, and use their strength to His
glory, for they are not their own.
They are accountable to God for the
use they make of their time and
strength, which are granted them of
Heaven. Now is the time to labor for
the salvation of our fellow men.
There are some who think that they
give money to the cause of Christ,
this is all they are required to do;
the precious time in which they might
do personal service for Jesus passes
unimproved. But it is the privilege
and duty of all who gave health and
strength to render to God’s
active service. All are to labor in
winning souls to Christ. Donations of
money cannot take the place of
this… Every moment is freighted
with eternal consequences. We are to
stand as minutemen, ready for service
at a moment’s notice. Sin and
wickedness are rapidly increasing;
and now we shall have to redeem the
time by laboring all the more
earnestly.
Our Responsibility
to the work in the Church
You may feel that
others have done wrong, and I know as
well as you do that a Christ like
spirit has not been manifested in the
church. But will this avail you in
the judgment? Will two wrongs make
one right? Hough one, two, or three
in the church have done wrong, this
will not blot out or excuse their
sin. Whatever course others may take,
your work is to set your own heart in
order. God has claims upon you which
no circumstances should lead you to
forget or neglect, for every soul is
precious in His sight.
Our Responsibility to
the work in the Home
Parents should teach
their children…that to do
something which will honor God and
bless humanity is worth striving for.
Even in the early years they can be
missionaries for God. The great
object that parents should seek to
attain for their dear children should
be the inward adorning. Parents
cannot afford to allow visitors and
strangers to claim their attention,
and by robbing them of time, which is
life’s great capital, make it
impossible for them to give their
children each day that patient
instruction which they must have to
give the right direction to their
developing minds.
Use of Time for
Character Development
“Do your best to
present yourself to God as one
approved, a workman who does not need
to be ashamed and who correctly
handles the word of truth.” II
Timothy 2:15 NIV The life of God,
which gives life to the world, is in
His word. It was by His word that
Jesus healed disease and cast out
demons. By His word He stilled the
sea and raised the dead; and the
people bore witness that His word was
with power. This word does not
repress activity. It opens before the
conscientious searcher channels for
activity. It does not leave men in
uncertainty, without an object, but
places before them the highest of all
aims, the winning of souls to Christ.
It puts in the hand a lamp that
lights the way to heaven. It tells of
unreachable riches, treasure beyond
estimate. The word of God is the
standard of character. In giving us
this word, God has put us in
possession of every truth essential
to salvation.
Prayer and
Communication with God
Begin to pray for
souls; come near to Christ, close to
His bleeding side. Let a meek and
quiet spirit adorn your lives, and
let your earnest, broken, humble
petitions ascend to Jesus for wisdom
that you may have success in saving
not only your own soul, but also the
souls of others. Many in the season
of devotion, fail of receiving the
blessing or real communion with God.
They are in too great haste. With
hurried steps they press through the
circle of Christ’s loving
presence, pausing for a moment within
the sacred precincts, but not waiting
for counsel. They have no time to
remain with the divine Teacher. With
their burdens they return to work.
These workers can
never attain the highest success
until they learn the secret of
strength. They must give themselves
time to think, to pray, to wait upon
God for a renewal of physical,
mental, and spiritual power. They
need the uplifting influence of the
Holy Spirit
Receiving this, they
will be quickened by fresh life. The
wearied frame and tried brain will be
refreshed; the burdened heart will be
lightened.
Not a pause for a
moment in Jesus presence, but
personal contact with Christ, to sit
down in companionship with Him –
this is our need. Happy will it be
for the children of our homes and the
students of our schools when parents
and teachers shall learn in their own
lives the precious experience
pictured in these words from Song of
Songs: “As the apple tree among
the trees of wood, So is my Beloved
among the sons. I sat down under His
shadow with great delight, And His
fruit was sweet to the taste. He
brought me to the banqueting house,
And His banner over me was
love.’ Song of Solomon
2:3,4.” KJV
The strength acquired
in prayer to God, united with
individual effort in training the
mind to thoughtfulness and
care-taking, prepares the person for
daily duties and keeps the spirit in
peace under all circumstances,
however trying. The temptations to
which we are daily exposed make
prayer a necessity. In order that we
may keep by the power of God through
faith, the desires of the mind should
be continually ascending in silent
prayer for help, for light, for
strength, for knowledge.
Seventh day Sabbath
Let there be ….
no desecration of His holy time. The
servant of God will call sacred that
which the Lord calls sacred. Thus he
show that he has chosen the Lord as
his leader. The Sabbath was made in
Eden, when the morning stars sang
together and all the sons of God
shouted for joy. God has placed it in
our charge. Let us keep it pure and
holy.
Exercise
Mental effort without
corresponding physical exercise calls
an undue proportion of blood to the
brain, and thus the circulation is
unbalanced. The brain has too much
blood, while the extremities have too
little. The hours of study and
recreation should be carefully
regulated. And a portion of the time
should be spent in physical labor.
Words and actions and
motives are recorded; but how little
do these light superficial heads and
hard hearts realize that an angel of
God stands writing down the manner in
which their precious moments are
employed.
What would you do if
someone deposited $86,400 into a bank
account for you each day that carries
the balance from one day to the next
and cancels whatever amount you
failed to spend by the end of the
day? Of course you would withdraw
every penny and use it as you saw
fit! Each of us has an account like
this. It is called “time.”
Every day a deposit of 86,400 seconds
goes into our account called
“life.” We have the
opportunity to invest every second
for the glory of God or to waste it,
never to regain the seconds lost. The
clock is running….Go!
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