Author: admin

There are times in life that call for us to repair what is broken. There are other seasons that demand that we break what is out of date! We must know the difference! We can spend inordinate amounts of time trying to repair what needs to be thrown away. In such occasions, we are guilty of putting new wine into old wine skins.

If you have a relationship or program or investment that continually is being stretched and ripped, perhaps what is needed is not another repair, but a fresh vision. If we must continually sew up another rip in our jeans, the time may have come to purchase a new pair of jeans!

Leaders often become emotionally attached to things that are too small or frail for the current demand. We find ourselves continually repairing a system that needs to be buried, not overhauled, once more. Think about the issues you have to continually address. Why is it still a problem? Will you need to continue investing large amounts of time into it? Or, is the issue that you have an outdated system? Instead of sewing one more patch on to a frayed pair of pants, is it time to tear it up and start afresh?

Most people are perennial collectors. We love to surround ourselves with possessions and friends. We often measure our self worth by how much we have accumulated. Yet it is unhealthy to be continually receiving without correspondingly giving.

We need to beware lest we assume that the more we have, the more important we are. A simple way to address this misconception is to regularly throw or give things away. That is, in one sense, what tithing was intended to accomplish. You could not become too attached to your money if you were regularly giving a significant portion of it away! Tithing was God’s solution for pathological hoarders.

There is something inherently wrong about Christians who hold on to a possession long after its usefulness. This is especially so when they are surrounded by people who could have greatly benefited from it. It is also inefficient to bury much needed possessions in mounds of items that should have been discarded. By throwing items away, we can make better use of the possessions we retain. What is it in your life and home that are past due to be thrown away?

We are by nature collectors. We instinctively gather people and possessions to ourselves. The more the merrier! And, there are seasons when this is important. Some people have nothing to show for their efforts because they collected nothing. They accumulated no possessions, or home equity, or friends, so they have nothing later in life. While we ought not to be greedy accumulators, Scripture does not discourage us from collecting good things along the way.

There are also times when it is wise to cast away and to refrain from embracing. Not everything in life needs to be kept near! Some possessions and responsibilities ought to be maintained at arm’s length. Likewise, some people should not be allowed too close to us. They can be untrustworthy, even dangerous. It would be foolish to naively trust everyone. Likewise, if we keep every responsibility and concern close to us, we will soon feel overwhelmed. That’s why wise leaders are continually pushing responsibilities and concerns “down line.”

Some leaders love to feel needed. Despite their complaints, some thoroughly enjoy being swamped with work and responsibility. It makes them feel needed and important. If this is you, consider what aspects of your life currently need to be cast away. What relationships must be kept at a healthier distance?

Some behaviors are inherently attractive. Laughing and dancing make life worth living! They always draw a crowd! Weeping and mourning, on the other hand, are largely avoided. No one wants to do them.

You may have been raised to believe (especially if you were a man) that you should avoid weeping. That it was a sign of weakness. You may, therefore, feel awkward every time an occasion seems to call for it. You might also have been reared in a church that taught that if you honored God, you would have no cause to weep. Times of weeping may seem to you like admitting spiritual defeat.

Scripture teaches that there are certain seasons in life that call for weeping and mourning. They are a natural part of life. In fact, we may not be fully experiencing life if we never have cause to weep. We might have wrongly avoided situations that were painful so we could abstain from weeping. Attempting to live life without tears is no way to live!

Some of us need to be reminded that it is also important to have times to laugh. We may have become so consumed with our work, that we have not noticed how long it has been since we laughed. Laughter and dancing are crucial for a healthy, full, meaningful life. Make sure you never go too long without laughter peeling from your home!

Life is filled with opposite! It seems obvious that there are times that require healing, but a time to kill? Of course, before you do something foolish, we should take note that the writer did not say, “A time to commit murder . . .” This was written to an agrarian society. People raised animals and offered sacrifices to God at the temple. They were used to killing livestock.

Nevertheless, killing animals was certainly not as pleasant as helping them to be born! Newness is exciting. Bringing something to an end is much more sobering. Yet both are necessary for a healthy life.

Beginning new programs at work or at church can be exhilarating. Bringing them to a close does not possess the same charm. People are generally glad when something is born. There are inevitable questions when something is put to death.

There are also times to break things down, and other times to build them up. Again, some activities are more enjoyable, and more widely praised, than others. As a result, we tend to drift toward those actions that we enjoy and avoid activities we find unpleasant. Yet we can’t afford to be one-dimensional leaders. We must be prepared to do whatever our particular season calls.

Springtime is a time to be born. It is invigorating. This is the season of newness. It is filled with potential. There is energy and enthusiasm in abundance. This is many people’s favorite season. Winter, on the other hand, is a time to die. People, projects, and plans come to an end. This may be people’s least favorite season. Nevertheless, Scripture indicates that dying is just as much a part of God’s plan for our life as is birth. In fact, we often cannot experience new life if certain aspects of our life have not died. We must let go of the old so we can bring in the new.

There are times in our lives when we must plant, and other times we should pluck. It is crucial that we know which of those seasons we are in at the moment! Some people want a harvest, but they have not properly sown. They face the sometimes, bitter truth that we reap what we sow.

As life flows in seasons, we find ourselves at different times, doing opposite activities. Sometimes it is absolutely appropriate to be bringing new projects to birth. At other times it is equally important to shut activities down. Life is not meant to always be the same. In fact, don’t be surprised if your life contains a bundle of opposites. What you are doing today might be the opposite of what you were doing a year or two ago. Don’t be alarmed. You may simply have shifted to a new season of life.

Life flows in seasons. It doesn’t stay the same. Wise people seek to understand what season they are in and then adjust their lives accordingly.

Sometimes our life is in spring: new possibilities seem to be arising. It is a glorious time of beginnings. At other times we are in summer: we work hard and long. That which we planted in spring begins to grow and mature. Other times we are in autumn: this is harvest time! We finally reap what we had sown in spring and cultivated in summer. Then comes winter: a time of decline, dormancy, and death. All four seasons will come and go throughout our life. And each season has a unique purpose for our life.

Scripture assures us that there is a time in our life for every purpose God has for us. We may not be able to accomplish everything we want to do; but we will have time to complete everything God plans for us. The key is to seek God’s purposes for our life. When we do, we will discover that regardless of how hectic our life may be, God will use each season in our life to accomplish His purposes.

What season does God presently have you? Are you focusing on God’s specific purpose for your life at this time?

An amazing life is ours to be had, if only we will live God’s way. When we pursue God with all of our heart, we cannot necessarily expect to be laden with worldly riches, regardless of the earnest assurances by television evangelists. But we can be assured of other treasures.

God values wisdom far more than dollars. He knows that when we are wise in life, we tend to experience other manifestations of success as well. Wisdom addresses the most pressing issues of life: raising a healthy, godly family, enjoying a fulfilling marriage, avoiding conflict with friends and colleagues, and making sound financial decisions. Wise decisions always lead to a healthy life! Likewise, knowledge allows us to undertake activities that the ignorant will miss. Knowledge opens doors to opportunity. Those who seek God will gain much of it.

But perhaps most importantly, those who live righteously will have homes filled with joy. We ought not minimize this enormous gift. Having a home filled with laughter is of inestimable worth! A humble home in which our spouse and children are filled with joy is worth infinitely more than a palace filled with dreary silence. It is clear that joy comes from God, not from accumulation of “stuff.” How has your wisdom, knowledge, and joy been growing, lately?

Businesses spend billions of dollars each year trying to make us dissatisfied. If they are to be believed, we are just one acquisition or vacation or car away from total bliss! But, once our credit cards, garages, and houses are brimming with purchases, we arrive at the disheartening reality that such pursuits inevitably lead to dissatisfaction.

Scripture continually emphasizes that the greatest pleasures often come from the simplest activities. We are continually being persuaded to long for the spectacular when it is often in the simple pleasures of life that we find contentment. The truth is that a simple meal, with enough to eat and drink, (along with loving companions) can bring great pleasure. Surprisingly, perhaps, Scripture also asserts that life can bring great pleasure to the one who “enjoys good” from his work.

For many people, their job is merely a means to earn a living and to pay their bills. But oh what joy is available to those who are accomplishing good from their labor. Work with purpose and labor that achieves good, blesses the soul. Achieving good with our life brings far more satisfaction than accumulating additional possessions! How do you currently feel about your work?

Wise people perform all of their labor with the profound awareness that they will ultimately pass on everything they have invested their life into to someone else. Organizations you lead, buildings you construct, visions you pursue, investments you make, possessions you collect, regardless of how grand, will one day be distributed to others. One day your heirs will take what you built, in their hands, and will use them as they see fit. What they do with your life’s investment might appall you! Such thoughts can bring great consternation!

Solomon was someone whose life investment was quickly squandered. Solomon may have been an astute leader, but his son Rehoboam was not. It took only one generation for Solomon’s wealth and prominence to be dissipated. His son lost ten of the nation’s tribes. An Egyptian army arrived and relieved the young king of much of the treasure his father had accumulated. Foolish choices quickly eroded the life’s work of Rehoboam’s father. That is the way of all our labor. We must eventually pass it on to someone else.

Knowing that others will one day control our life’s work, we can refuse to invest our life in anything. Or, we can commit to training our successors so they are prepared to handle what they are given. Are you presently living with a keen awareness of what lies in the future?