Don't be fooled, time is short and precious!

Psalms 90:12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.
Ephesians 5:16 ...redeeming the time because the days are evil.
Ecc. 3:17 ...."a time for every purpose"
James 4:13-15 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”

As we enter a New Year, remember the one constant true for everyone, rich or poor, male or female: each of us is given 8,760 hours in a Gregorian calendar year. That is, 1,440 minutes a day, or 525,600 minutes a year. Sounds like a lot, yet have you noticed how time flies these days?

Personally, I can't find enough hours in a day to accomplish all that I want to. When I was younger, I had all the time in the world. These days its rate of passage is just short of astonishing. It seems, for example, like yesterday, that 9/11 happened. It's been 21 years. Kids entering the army now weren't even born yet!

And time is one thing we cannot recapture once lost. Are we behaving like we have all the time in the world? We don't, and it was always an illusion to think otherwise. Time is precious. A heart of wisdom will rightly value the limited and uncertain portion allotted and will make the most of it.

Seize the day. Discover the purpose for the time. The Lord will guide and empower you to live meaningfully and fruitfully, even as if today is the last day of your life; (it actually could be). If you need to, repent. If you need to, reconcile; don't wait. Pray for the Lord's economy in your use of time. You'll be amazed at the ways He inspires, arranges, and invests your time with His wonderful purposes. Every minute of your life will be assessed according to His value. So make the most of it...

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A foreign soldier was brought before his commanding officer and accused of communicating with the enemy. He had been seen emerging from an area where their troops were known to patrol. The poor man summed up his defense in a few words, stating that he had slipped away to spend an hour alone in prayer. "Have you been in the habit of spending an hour in private prayer?" demanded the officer. "Yes, Sir," he replied. "Well" said his commander, "never in your life have you been in more need of prayer than right now. Kneel down and pray aloud so that we all may hear you."

As the world celebrates the end of 2014 and enters into 2015, it looks toward the conclusion of yet another year. However, God has not been working his plan according to the Gregorian calendar -- but rather according to His own calendar. For example, when Yeshua (Jesus) was crucified, and became the Lamb of God slain for the world, it was on the Biblical feast of Passover (Pesach in Hebrew).

2 Corinthians 2:14-15 14 Now thanks be to God, which always leads us to triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of His knowledge in every place. For we unto God a sweet fragrance of Christ, in ...

What is it about salt? And how do I season speech with it? Gracious speech is sweet, yet Paul says to season it with salt.

Charles Spurgeon wrote "Prayer pulls the rope below and the great bell rings above in the ears of God. Some scarcely stir the bell, for they pray so languidly. Others give but an occasional pluck at the rope. But he who wins with heaven is the man who grasps the rope boldly and pulls continuously, with all his might."

In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their “flying machine” off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: “We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas.” Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, “How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas.”

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. His contractor was sorry to see such a good employee go, and asked him if he would build just one last house as a personal favor. The carpenter agreed but his heart was not in it. He resorted to bad workmanship and using cheap materials.