At M2M, we enjoy sending updates from some of our ministry partners. Breakfast With Fred Leadership Institute is an organization committed to bringing men and women with leadership expertise, life experience, and messages of hope to Christian campuses for the purpose of immersing themselves in campus and community life for 30 hours. The mission is to “stretch and bless the next generation of leaders…to the glory of God.”
Fred approached every element of his life from a philosophical and theological position. He constructed a system of thought which served as the underpinning. His study of time is a good example.
Taking Time
As Donald Bloesch puts it, “Busyness is the new holiness.” Lack of time is a status symbol, and to me, that is backwards. If you really are somebody, you are in control of your time.
Personally, I think optimizing opportunities and talents is in a sense bringing redemption to everything around me – that is the valid reason to use time well.
These are my philosophical cornerstones:
1) I am a created being and therefore responsible to the Creator for my life.
2) Time is simply life’s clock. Time is a tool – a means in life – never an end. Time is not something to be pursued for its own sake, but for what can be done with it.
3) Since my life is measured by time, I have a responsibility to control it. Most of us don’t let other people spend our money; likewise, we should limit their power to spend our money.
4) I have been given the same amount of time each day as everybody else. The great achievers of the world don’t have any more hours than I do. It is simply untrue to say, “I don’t have enough time.” What is not the same for everybody is energy. Unless I recognize my level of energy and realize that it comes in ebbs and surges, I won’t use my time well. I won’t accomplish all that I could.
5) I also believe that anything I cannot accomplish in the time I have is apparently not my God-given responsibility to achieve. God is not going to hold me accountable for what I cannot do because of genuine lack of time.
6) When I know the ultimate purpose of my life, I can know whether I’m using my time properly. If I do not know that ultimate purpose, I have no way of judging my efficiency. Only God and I can know for sure whether I’m wasting or using.
I decided a long time ago that my ultimate goal in life was to stretch other people. I wanted them to live better, fuller, bigger, more noble than if they hadn’t met me. This is my redeeming call.
This week think about: 1) What is my purpose? 2) How do I assess the use of my time? 3) Where is God using me to stretch others?
Words of Wisdom: “Personally, I think optimizing opportunities and talents is in a sense bringing redemption to everything around me – that is the valid reason to use time well.”
Wisdom from the Word: “God gave Solomon wisdom and very great discernment; the breadth of his understanding was as infinite as the sand on the seashore.” (1 Kings 4:29 NET Bible)