LEADERS ARE PUNCTUAL“This is the beginning of a new day. God has given me this day to
use as I will. I can waste it or use it for good. But what I do today
is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it. When
tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving in its place
something that I have traded for it. I want it to be gain and not
loss; good and not evil; success and not failure; in order that I shall
not regret the price I have paid for it.” (Author unknown).As we have already seen, Jesus lived and ministered with an acute
understanding of the importance of time. This was reflected in His
statement to the disciples: “As long as it is day, we must do the work of
Him Who sent Me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” (John
9:4). No leader knows how long his “day of ministry” will be. For Jesus, it
was just three short years. But His life and ministry reveal the principle
that it is not so much how long we live, as how well we live. There are many
people who live very long lives – but accomplish very little. They just
“put in their time.” There are others whose lives are much shorter – but
their influence and impact is far reaching. One of the things that make
the difference is the wise use of time.
Principle:
“Th e best use of one’s life is to spend it for
something that will outlast it. Life’s value is
not its duration but its donation – not how
long we live, but how fully and how well.”^5
(William James, philosopher)Beware of the sin of procrastination! It is one of the greatest “time
robbers” in life! If you allow this thief to enter your life, he will steal you
blind! He will rob you of a life of strategic time investment! This folly
of time and task deferment known as procrastination, seduces us to puts off
until tomorrow what should be done today. This mentality is based upon
the false assumption that tomorrow, or sometime later, we will have the
same opportunity...the door will still be open...we will “feel like it”...the
time will be better for us than it is now. At that fuzzy future time we hope
will come, we will then be able to begin the project...initiate the change...
make the improvement...finish the job. None of us is promised tomorrow –
so we must seize today! Many people procrastinate their lives away! They are