Making the Most of Opportunities (Time)

The issue that more people most often have come to talk to me about throughout my years at LAC is that their lives seem to be out of control. Here in Southern California, with all our sunshine and beauty, we seem to feel stressed out, strung out, wrung out, burned out and worn out. So, last week, I may have only added to our stress. I took the whole message to talk about the value of work and being productive. God worked in Gen. 1 and took joy in it – and he made us in his image to find great shalom when we are making a difference in this world.

I had countless positive comments about that message – but there was one persistent question, i.e.: “Pastor Greg, I believe that what you said is true and I’ve often had so much joy when my life has been productive but… why is it that so much of my frustration and burn out in life come directly from my work?”

And that’s true about our work, isn’t it? What’s happened to the workplace in America over the past decade? When I was a child, my father worked a 40-hour workweek. Who hears of such a thing now? My parents established a family rhythm to our lives -- devotions in the morning, work or school for 8 hours. My Dad came home at the same time every evening and we all had dinner together as a family. Then, we did homework, played games, watched TV together, and went to sporting events, etc. until it was time to go to sleep. We did this Monday through Friday. Then, on Saturday, my Mom assigned us all our chores and we worked around the house. My Dad completed his “honey-do” list. My Mom made sure all our homework was completed before we went to bed on Saturday night. We had to get it all done. We did not work (including homework) on Sundays – but we went to church and then had lots of fun the rest of the day.

Life had a rhythm to it. Sunday was a beautiful day of restoration. And, then we all enjoyed Monday too. We loved to get back to see our friends at school and I know my folks loved going back to work.

But now, how many of us have rhythms like that? We seem to be always consumed by things we have to do. Every day seems to be a day like all the others. Why are things so out of control? Is it?

• The global financial competition – in which we need to work unending work weeks to compete with people from other countries who are working longer work weeks than we are?
• The financial downturn – in which employers feel they have to get more and more productivity out of fewer and fewer workers so that they can survive?
• Cell phones and texting and emails and unending training for soccer or ballet (even on Sundays…) – that make it so we never get a break from our responsibilities and never get a moment simply to stop what we usually do?

This is what some of you talked to me about after my last message. You told me there is so much to do that you wonder if you can ever stop. Text messages coming in – Facebook messages that seem so important – tasks that we haven’t quite gotten finished… If we ever stop for a moment, we wonder what's the value of all this stuff we’re doing. But we can't stop too long for there's something else on the I-Phone.

I am convinced that this non‑stop way of living is not what God intended. But how is the pattern ever to be broken? The answer, I think, begins in the message I’m bringing today. So I ask you to listen carefully and prayerfully. I know that I may not address specifically some of the issues you are wrestling with either in your work or in your failure to have employment – or in your stressed out life right now. But, I’m convinced that there is a foundational rhythm that God has built into this world. I believe God enables us to enjoy our lives when we set God’s own foundational rhythm into place in our lives – and then let the rest of our life-rhythms find their places on this foundation. I think this message is important to each one of us here today. The rhythm that God has created us to build our lives around is 6 and 1 – 6 and 1… Six days we are to identify and complete the work God has called us to do. And then one day is to be “holy different”.

I did a whole message four years ago on the 4^th Command. In that message, I dealt with the controversy of which day is the Sabbath – Saturday or Sunday. Some of you remember that I am convinced that this is a question that genuine believers can disagree about and still be brothers and sisters. I’m not going to take that up again today. Instead, I want to focus on the biblical teaching that if we will make the most of our lives (i.e., not waste our lives), we will only do so fully when we follow the rhythms the God in whose image we are made instructs us to follow, i.e., a rhythm that is 6 & 1, 6 & 1…

I’m wondering if you agree with me – that God really established a rhythm on which we are to build our lives. When I speak about this message I first am reminded of how hard it is for me to establish it as a basic part of my life. I will tell you, that when my life gets out of control and I come back to this rhythm, then things begin to become manageable again.

But, this rhythm is so different from our culture – and from our natural fallen human tendencies, that we resist it. We ignore it – or learn to make excuses. So, I know I must show you how the Bible develops this teaching to us from its opening chapters:

God worked six days in Genesis 1. He took joy in his work – looking at it and declaring it to be very good. But, then, for one day out of seven, God stopped doing his work. Gen. 2:2 says God rested. This always brings up the big question of why an omnipotent God took time to rest. “Does God get tired?” a child asked me once. Well, I’m quite sure he doesn’t. But he knows that we will and he wants us to take a day to be restored. But, more than that, the word for “rest” in Gen. 2:2 is much deeper than the idea of just stopping because we’re tired. Look at places like Psalm 95 and Hebrews 3-4. You’ll see that as great as being productive is, we do not live just to work. In fact, our work can become a slave-master to us and rob us of shalom. The “rest” God took is referring to something we all have experienced, i.e., the joy that we feel when we take time to stop and look at our world again -- to say thanks for the good things we still have and can do -- to remember the gift of life God has given us. God made us in his image – and a part of that is that he made us to be able to work for 6 days. And, the only way we can enjoy what we do is to be able to stop and reflect and remember and enjoy.

I love how it’s put in Gen. 2:3 – “God blessed the 7^th day and made it holy”. The Hebrew word for blessing, “waybarek”, is used in the Bible for a deeply satisfying gift of grace and joy from God. And the blessing is that one day is holy, “wayqaddes”, meaning it is different from – set apart from – the others. So, there is great joy from having something to accomplish in our lives. But, there will only be satisfying joy in that work if we have one day to stop and look at it and remember that the life we live is not God – but a gift from God. There is only this blessing when one day is holy.

Let’s look at it in Deut. 5: 12-15:

Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work… Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.

Do any of you remember that God said that he gave his commands so that it may go well with us – that we may live and prosper (Deut. 5:29,33). It’s striking that there was a time when the people of Israel could not obey this command, i.e., when they were slaves. “But,” God says, “when I’ve set you free you can live again. You can have a life of shalom again.” And, specifically, that meant that after they were set free, they had the great privilege of working six days and resting one. Like a loving parent, God is declaring, “I love you. I want you to live well. I don’t want you to waste your life so make sure one day is holy – is one in which you cease to work and you rest.”

II. The Parts of the Rhythm

Even though this section of my message to you might seem to be overly obvious, I think it’s very important to nail down what is included in God’s foundational four-part rhythm for life.

Part 1: Identify what the work is that God gives you to do –

We cannot know what to cease from until we identify what the work is. Take out a sheet of paper and begin writing down what your work is. A big part might be your employment. Or, if unemployed, it might be the task of looking for employment. I think my Dad would want me to make sure to say, “Put the ‘honey-do’ list in this area of work.” You see, there are always things we simply have to do that may have little to do with a career or with receiving a salary. Students, you’ve got to put on your list all those things that you find on all your syllabi. Identify all your work. Write it down.

Part 2: Make a Commitment to Do the Work.

People often think the fourth commandment is only about ceasing to work on one day out of six. We miss the command to work for six. In Eph. 6:5-9, the Apostle Paul talks about work – even work most people would not choose to do – as being “service as unto the Lord”. Paul was underscoring what I said last week, i.e., that work is not a curse but is a part of being able to reflect the image of God. This week, we add to that the teaching that a part of how God has commanded us to live is to do our work. To be able to work is a blessing but it is also a command. Therefore, when we go to our work, we go there knowing that the health and strength to be able to work is a gift from God and that the situation we are in at this moment is still within God’s sovereignty. And, As Col 4:5 says, we should make the most of every opportunity God gives us at work. The Bible says we should work as if we are serving the Lord there – because we are serving him. That perspective will not always change the work you have to do or the boss who supervises you – but it will change you. So, do the work.

Part 3: Do it all in six days.

Look at Deut. 5:13 once again: Six days you shall labor and do all your work… Do you see that last phrase? That list that you put together in Part 1 – must be completed in six days. This is a part of the commanded rhythm that is often ignored. But, I think it’s a big key to obeying the command – and to living well.

Have you seen Fiddler on the Roof? I love the part in which the father, Tevye, is rushing to get everything done before Sabbath begins. He has to get the milk jars put away, the lame horse put to rest, and the cart into its right place. Golde, his wife, is yelling at him to hurry. He’s been talking too much and not getting his work done and Sabbath is about to begin. He’s going to get his God-appointed work done in six days. And, when it’s done – “Whew.” They can pray and they can eat and they can be together and they can sing. But that could never have happened together if he – or any of the family had said, “Oh, I didn’t get my homework done, so just go on without me.”

Part 4: On the seventh day, case the work. Rest and enjoy!

Again, this word that one day is to be holy means, at its root, “different from” or “separate from”. Every day is to be lived to the Lord—the Bible makes that very clear. The distinction of this day is not that it's lived to the Lord and the others aren't. We read Colossians 4:2-6 in our Scripture reading because God tells us that on everyday, a part of our rhythm is to be watchful and to pray. We are to be alert to God’s Word, alert to opportunities, and always in a posture of communicating with God. We should always be asking God how he would have us to live.

The rhythm God showed us in creation and commanded in his code is that we are to take a day to rest ‑‑ to break that hectic pattern that characterizes life usually. The other 6 days may be hectic and turbulent but this one is to be different. It is implied that we will be able to handle whatever the other six days may bring if we make sure that one of them is a day of rest. Remember that it is God who commands you to stop. He built you so that you'll enjoy work -- but only if you dance the dance of life according to his 6 and 1 rhythm.

III. Some questions about God’s Rhythm

#1: Will you believe God? Will you believe that God made you in such a way that you will function best in every area of life when you work six days and rest one. I think this goes against our nature. Marva Dawn, in her book Keeping the Sabbath Wholly, tells of a wagon trail trip from the east to Oregon. A dispute broke out over whether the people would travel constantly, seven days a week, or whether they would travel six with a regular rest day. The caravan broke into two groups over the issue. But, at the end, the group that followed God’s pace arrived days ahead of the other and with their horses and people rested. I imagine that the first group followed the 6 & 1 pattern simply out of obedience to God but not really thinking things would actually go well when they did. God probably surprised them with their faster and healthier journey.

So, I must ask, “Do you really believe that things will ‘go well’ with you if you live the way God tells you to?” Students, I’m saying that you will be better students if you study hard six days and set one day aside with no study. The same is true of business people‑‑of us all.

And the flip side is also true: That we will suffer if we ignore this pattern‑‑whether in the direction of being lazy or of being a workaholic. For those here obsessed with work, I tell you: God will bless your work more if you will rest. Work is a wonderful thing but it can become an ugly and destructive God. God says, "You must rest!" If you won't listen to God saying it, pretty soon you will hear your Doctor saying it and by then it may be too late.

#2: Will you enjoy your day of rest?

This day of rest is to be a day of joy and refreshment ‑‑ not of legalistic drudgery and burden. You see, one of the things that makes this command difficult to obey is that many have turned it into a bunch of legalistic rules. They seem to think that God just wanted a day when all we thought about was what we cannot do. Remember Jesus' clear word about this: "The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).

And there is another danger in this issue too, isn’t there. There is that antinomian spirit of our day that says, “I can run my own life. I don't care if God does tell me to rest, I'm not going to do it." I can tell you that, in the long run, that way of living will not go well. Before the Lord, you must find your way to apply this command to your life – but one thing is clear: obedience to this will bring joy – not drudgery.

Let me throw something past you for your consideration: Do you think it’s possible that what we do on our Sabbaths might be different? The work God has given me might be different from the work God has given you. If so, what we cease from might differ. Maybe my doing your work on my Sabbath might be refreshing for me. If I go out and dig around in the dirt, it might be renewing for me when my work is always with my mind and mouth. I’m not sure about that. I’m just wondering. So, think about it. Pray about it. The Sabbath is a day given to us by the Lord that is to be lived, as all days, unto the Lord.
#3 Will this be easy? (It’s not a suggestion…)

We live in a fallen world and there are sometimes things in this world that keep us from obeying God’s 4^th command. That’s not true of most of us but it is sometimes the case in this sinful world. That was clearly true of the people of Israel. There was a time in their lives when they were slaves and could not enjoy the fullness of shalom that God intended. You may be in some kind of “slavery” (metaphorically speaking) now. God knows that. But, I love Deut. 5:15 – “Remember the time when you were in slavery and your work was a bondage. But now you are free to live. So, get back to my rhythm. Live in shalom.” And that’s what I want you to do.

And I simply must say a word to our Moms of young children – and sometimes Dads too. I think you are in one of the most valuable times imaginable of stewarding God’s gift to you for kingdom impact. There is nothing more valuable than a human life and nothing more important to God than the way you invest in your children. Our children are not our possessions. They are a matter of stewardship. They are God’s just as we are. The potential of changing our world through investing in the nurturing of children is among God’s highest and noblest callings.

But, how do you find rest from your work – even work of this noble standing before the Lord? I confess that I have no pat answer. I know that in the extended families of the Bible-times, the whole family stepped in to set a mother free for periods of rest. That’s so hard in our nuclear families – especially when families are far away from us or are broken. Single Moms and Dads – I declare to you that God knows how hard it is for you to find a time and place for rest. Just as he did not see the time when Israel could not have a day of rest as being disobedience, he will not see this time of your life as disobedience.

I do believe that in our society, a world of independent or broken families, our church is to play some of the role of a family. That’s why I believe so firmly in having a nursery so that our parents can cease their work even for an hour – and rest. That’s why I love ministries like Teen MOPS, and MOPS, and MOPS Next. It may not enable the full rhythm of life that we’ve talked about. But, I believe God will give joy and strength as we takes steps to “dance with him” – especially in those years when we are parenting his little children made in his image.

In Christian community, we have to watch out for and help one another. We shouldn't think it will be easy to obey God’s rhythms when all the systems of our world will war against it. Hebrews 4 lets us know that our longing for rest is a part of our longing for heaven – the place where we will truly be free to dance in keeping with God’s rhythm. But I urge us to commit ourselves to it now. Our world will press us constantly to get back into the grind every day but we must resist. Let me leave us with two verses from God simply to encourage us all:

Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever! Deut. 5:29

Walk in obedience to all that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days… Deut. 5:33

How? Well, the foundational rhythm is this: “Observe a Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” When we've worked hard for six days, the one day of rest is a both a relief and a delight. It fits just what we need.

To His glory alone,

Dr. Greg Waybright
Senior Pastor

Greg Waybright • Copyright 2012, Lake Avenue Church