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One Day At A Time!

Matthew 6:34

In a book entitled, Celebrate the Temporary, the author, Clyde H. Reid, speaks to all of us
about the peril of living either in the past or in the future, and totally, missing the present.

He encourages us to seize the potential of each present moment and each contemporary experience,
if we would live life to the full, and if we would make a significant contribution with our lives.
Many of us live under the crushing burden of accumulated yesterdays and fearful tomorrows.
To do so disqualifies us and robs us of the opportunity to really live in the present.

Someone has said that there are two days that we should eliminate from our calendar.
One of those days is yesterday, the other is tomorrow.
We must beware lest we let yesterday or tomorrow hinder us from doing our best today.

An Indian dramatist, Kalidasa, writes in a poem:

";Look to this day!
For it is life, the very life of life.
In its brief course
Lie all the verities and realities of your existence;
The bliss of growth
The glory of action
The splendor of achievement.

For yesterday is but a dream
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Look well, therefore, to this day!
Such is the salutation to the dawn
."

Most of us tend to put off living in the present in order that we might worry about the future.
All of us have been guilty at times of embittering the present by filling our minds with regrets concerning
the things that have happened in the past.

Dr. William Barclay in his book, Daily Celebration, states:

" Nearly all great men have been haunted by the sense of the shortness of time
and of the uncertainty of time... as we grow older, and as time grows ever shorter,
there are certain things that we should remember.

We should never leave things half finished in case they are never finished.
We should carefully choose what we are going to do -- for there is no longer time to do everything,
and we should do the things which really matter.

We should never come to the end of the day with a quarrel or a breach between us or any of our fellowmen
for it may be that the quarrel will never be mended and the breach will never be closed.

We only get so much time, and when that is finished we cannot get any more.
None of us knows how much we are going to get.
If there is something to be learned, we must learn it now; for the longer we put it off, the harder it will be to learn it.
Do it now!
"

W. Clement Stone has said that "Do it now!" is one of the great self-motivators.
Those who have achieved success in life have learned to do it now, rather than surrendering to procrastination.

The Stewardship of Time

We will give an account to our Lord of our use of time.

In the magazine, Success Unlimited, Aristotle Onassis gave ten secrets of his success.
One of these was related to time.
He said, "Don't sleep too much or you'll wake up a failure.
If you sleep three hours less each night for a year, you will have an extra month and a half to succeed in
."

If this multimillionaire would deprive himself of sleep in order to make money, it seems that we, as children of God,
should make better use of our time to render service of eternal significance for our Lord.

The Management of Time

We are responsible for the manner in which we use the gift of time.
Here are some suggestions that we might employ to improve our stewardship of time.
Begin the day with a prayer of thanksgiving.
The Psalmist said, "This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."
(Psalm 118:24)
With the attitude of the psalmist, we should face each new day with the prayer of thanksgiving upon our lips. Thank God for what He is going to do in your life this very day.

To begin the day with an attitude of thanksgiving and with a prayer of thanksgiving will set the tone for the day.
It will help you face every situation and every circumstance with a positive mental attitude in the assurance
that God will bring good to those who love Him and trust Him. (Romans 8:28)

Accept the day as an opportunity to help others. Let God help you to help others in their time of need.
Accept the day as an opportunity to help your family.

Courtship is a process that should be carried on into marriage.
Parents should seek to minister in a creative and positive manner to the well-being of their children.
When families earnestly seek to be of help to each other, family life will be so much better.

Be a helper to others in your immediate circle. Determined to be a helper to those along the way of your daily journey.
There are services you can render to a stranger. Plan your day according to your priorities. It will be surprising at what you have accomplished at the end of the day.

As you schedule your day, allow for interruptions. Jesus recognize and responded to the urgency of the present.
Jesus avoided the peril of living in yesterday or tomorrow.
He concentrated upon the present.
Hear Jesus as he said, "We must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day;
night comes, when no one can work
." (John 9:4)

An unknown author has said it powerfully:

" If you have hard work to do... Do it now!
Today the skies are clear and blue,
Tomorrow clouds may come in view,
Yesterday is not for you... Do it now!

If you have a song to sing... Sing it now!
Let the notes of gladness ring,
Clear as song of bird in spring,
Let every day some music bring... Sing it now!

If you have kind words to say... Say them now!
Tomorrow may not come your way,
Do a kindness while you may,
Loved ones will not always stay... Say them now!

If you have a smile to show... Show it now!
Make hearts happy, roses grow,
Let the friends around you know
The love you have before they go... Show it now
! "

Receive Jesus Christ now!
If you are living without Christ, receive Him into your heart now!

If you, as a Christian, have been giving Jesus Christ less than your best, give Him your all now!

Procrastination is not only the thief of time, it is the thief of souls.
The road of "by and by " leads to the city of never.
Do it now!
Now is the acceptable time!

Jesus is here now!
He is calling your name!

Come to Him now!
You will never be the same again
You will begin a new year with a new life!

Sermon by Dr. Harold L. White
Email Dr. White at hleewhite@aol.com

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