Putting it all Together
Progress is step by step. One grade at a time. One town at a time. You never just arrive – you must take the journey. It's part of the process and just as important as the destination. Go for consistency - doing well for the long haul. Not just quick bursts of enthusiasm. Growth takes time and continued effort.
If we are faithful with what we have (looking after it well), God will give us more. Are you ruling well over the little you have? Are you faithful with what you've got? Looking for more without dealing well with what you've got is immaturity. God looks at how well we handle what we have to determine what we can receive (read Luke 12:48). God rewards faithfulness. Note Jesus' parables - "Well done, good and faithful servant.”
To the unsuccessful person, time doesn’t matter. Life moves according to chance. What comes, comes. What doesn’t, doesn’t. To the successful person, time is not to be wasted. Time gives motivation for setting goals, planning carefully and setting priorities.
Moses saw the need for using time wisely.
Ps 90:12. So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. NKJV
How many days do you have left? Take some time to ponder this …
Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening it deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day.
What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course!!!
Each of us has such a bank. Its name is TIME.
Every morning, it credits us with 86,400 seconds.
Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this you have failed to invest to good purpose.
It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.
Each day it opens a new account for you.
Each night it burns the remains of the day.
If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours.
There is no going back.
There is no drawing against “tomorrow.”
You must live in the present on today’s deposits.
Invest it so as to get from it the utmost.
The clock is running.
Make the most of today.
Conclusion
God’s gift to you is your potential. Your gift back to Him is what you do with it (see Matt.25:14-30). Get ready for another cycle of the seasons. Start thinking about your next harvest. When you see the returns of your labour, you want to start dreaming again and the cycle of the seasons commences once again. Move to an even greater harvest and more diverse crops. Become a better farmer. May you live a fruitful life that brings honour and glory to God!
P.S. There are many ways of looking at the seasons symbolically or as an analogy for our personal lives. A number of books have been written on the subject like Timing is Everything by Denis Waitley and Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life by Charles Swindoll. I gleaned a number of thoughts from these two resources for these BLOG posts.
Thank you Mark for these excellent encouraging series of wisdom.