Making the Best Use of Our Time

So, what are they?
You know…, those promises you’re thinking about making to yourself right before the end of the year.  Whatcha going with this year?
    …execise a little more?
… spend a little less?
…learn a new hobby
…quit smoking? (I hope you will do this!)Whatever your plans are for the coming year, my sincere prayer is that you will experience daily the grace of God at work in your life.  Hey, it’s been a tough 2020.  And as you know, many of us didn’t make it to see the end of the year.  I praise God that He has preserved your life.  May God be pleased to grant a new sense of optimism and hope as He leads us into a new chapter of life.

Personally, I am not one to make resolutions at the beginning of the year.  It’s not because of fear of not keeping them.  It is simply because of my belief that if there is something I need to change or improve, there’s no better time than the present to do so.  Why wait to the start of a new year?  
(Allow me time to descend from this high horse)

Nevertheless, if you are someone who does make resolutions at the start of the year, suffer me to offer just this one suggestion:

Read more books.  And not just any book.  Read the kind of books that will challenge you to grow spiritually.  Read any one of the books by E.M. Bounds on the subject of prayer.  Read biographies of great men and women who finished the race strong for the cause of Christ.  Read books that share captivating accounts of revival changing an entire culture.  Few things in life can have the very dramatic effects upon one’s heart and mind like a good book.The apostle Paul understood the value of good books.  As he is writing Timothy, he may clearly be aware that this may very well be his last letter.  Indeed it would be.  But did you see what Paul prioritized even at this eleventh hour of life?

Beloved, I encourage you to invest in plenty of good books to read this coming year.  Do the work to find those precious Christian classics that have been used by God to stimulate the faith of believers over several generations.  In addition to your daily reading of the Scriptures (I hope this goes without saying), make the best use of your time.  Read a good book.

In Him

Pastor Mark