Till Now….Another Opportunity!?!

Till Now….Another Opportunity!?!
As we enter the last month in this year, we may express our feelings and experiences in the following ways. It will help you to have an Evaluation about the way you spent the last eleven months. Please go through this with an open mind:
“Oh, the Christmas month has come. Jolly!”
”Oh My, What to do for Christmas expenses?”
“ Hooray! Another New year is coming!”
“One year closer to my grave??”
“Oh, God is good in all these 11 months!”
“Oh, already 11 months has gone in this year!”
“Hi, I have completed one semester / term this academic year!”
“I failed this time also. I have to try again in March!”
“ I made progress in my career and climbing the ladder”
“ I am not able to achieve the targets and I am afraid, I may lose my job”
“I am happy about the time I spent with God in prayer and Bible meditation all these 11 months”
“ Most of the days I had hurried mechanical devotions and I feel very dry in my spirit”
“I have grown closer to God this year”
“ I am afraid, I am drifting away from God”
“God has given me good health all these 11 months.”
“ This year was full of sickness and I am losing my strength day by day.”
“I am happy about all the opportunities I have used these 11 months to witness to God’s love”
“Hardly I did anything for the Lord these 11 months”
“I enjoy my time with my spouse and children. We enjoy God’s love and joy”
“ I hardly had a relaxed evening with my family. I feel guilty for this mechanical busy life”
“Oh, we enjoy our Family Prayer. It is like heaven on earth”
“ We are too busy to sit together for Prayer. Much time is gone in TV serials / cricket shows”
“This year we have increased our giving for God. We enjoy giving to God and He meets our needs.”
“We struggled each month to meet both ends. Where is the money to give for God?”
“I was able to win few souls this year. Wonderful!”
“ I have missed all opportunities for witnessing”
Add on ……




I encourage you to read Psalm 90. You know who wrote this? Not David, but it is a Prayer of Moses, the man of God! It takes less than one minute to read this psalm once. I finished reading it in 58 seconds. But, read it again and again and underline the words that denote time and day. In 17 verses I noted 20 words that mention about time! Let us consider few thoughts from this Psalm.
The Psalm talks about the eternal being of God contrary to the fragility of man’s life which melts away by his failures. “we finish our years with a moan / like a sigh” – v 9. A wonderful prayer is made here: “ Teach us to number our days aright that we may gain a heart of wisdom” – v 12. Are we conscious about the worth of each day? Money and other resources will stay on unless you spend them. But, the hours and days will slip away through you whether you are using them or not. They will never come back. The November 2009 will never again occur in history. “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!”
We’ve to begin each day with a quality time with God in prayer and meditation of His Words. Pray, visualizing and making a run through of all your commitments, duties and all the situations you will face and all the communications you’ll make – by conversation, sms, mobile, e mails, chats etc. Ask the Lord to be with us in all these. We can see the presence of the Lord leading us throughout the day. We can present all our spiritual, physical, emotional, and mental needs to God in the morning. We will see the Jehovahjireh meeting all our needs. That is what the Psalmist prays: “Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days” – v14.
In this twelfth month also we can request the Lord to give us the opportunities which we have lost in the past 11 months. Lord can help us to get over our past failures and hurts- “ Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years we have seen trouble” – v 15. The last 2 verses talk about the Lord revealing His deeds and splendor and ask Him to bless the hand work of all of us. We need His blessings in our studies, work and in all our relationships.
The life of Jesus on earth was not a “take it as it comes” style. It was a planned one. The chain which talks about “my time” in John is an example for this – John 2:4; 7:6; 12:23,27; 13:1; 16:32; 17:17:1. Planning is important, but it has to be God-centered. Mere human plan by trust on the own efforts will be futile – Luke 12:19-21; James 4:13-15.Let us close with the words of Paul who lived his life to the full extent for the glory of God: “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:15,16.


P.Jebaraj is Secretary for UESI Church Relations and Christian Ethics & Social Concerns Departments based in Chennai.
pjebarajuesi@hotmail.com