The Battle Is Won In The Minutes

TODAY’S READING - Job 22; Mark 7; Mark 8

SCRIPTURE:  Mark 8:34-37 

“Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?  Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?’“

OBSERVATION:

What a sobering passage.  To think of the things that people trade eternity for - or even trade a minute with God for.  Careers, success, financial gain, or other things that one can build his life on and around.  Definitely not worth it.  I think that most people who follow Christ have understand the folly of that and at least are engaged in the struggle to balance their life.  I think in the big picture and in the whole of life, we would say that we have submitted to Christ.  I think of the minutes though.  The minutes that we give to anger, or lust, or myspace, or complaining, etc..  I think that is where most of us win or lose the battle - in minutes.  The scales are tipped against us one minute at a time.

On the flip side the scales can be stacked for us if we go beyond submission to Christ to true denial of ourselves - losing our life in Christ.  Giving up our rights to anger, giving up our desire for sexual gratification, finding community in Christ rather than online, and the like.

APPLICATION:

I need to be mindful of the minutes.  Not just feel complacent that I’ve given my future to Jesus, but that I would find true security and fulness by giving Jesus my entire life minute by minute.  I need to take inventory of my time, emotions, behavior, and thought life.  I need to make my brain “punch a clock” so I can be mindful of what I spend my time meditating on.

PRAYER:

Father, thank you for the life that you have given me.  It’s not a life reserved for the future, but one to be experienced now.  Help me to give myself to you and the gospel, Lord, so that I could find the life you have for me.  Help me to give you my minutes.  In Jesus name, AMEN!