We’re recently started a new series called “reset”.  In the first week, we talked about how Jesus makes it possible to reset all of life, giving us a fresh start in life that impacts every key area.  We’re going to look at many of these in depth, and this week we see how Jesus resets our use of time.

There was a time in my life when I prided myself on never needing a day planner.  I remembered everything I signed up for, and never double booked.  That was high school.  Ever since, I’ve found my time needed to be managed.

Through university, I started to rely on a day planner, an old fashioned spiral bound book.  I got progressively busier, but could still say yes to pretty much anything I wanted.  I would stay up all night getting things done if I needed to.  I was young.

By the time I started working, I had to start making choices.  I can only be in one meeting, one event, or one place at a time.  When I first pastored a church, I was still working as a paramedic on the side, until I finally realized I simply didn’t have the time to do both things well.  And still today, I find myself constantly choosing between demands on my time.  It’s only escalated since having children.

I can go on.  You probably can, too.  Bottom line, unless we’re still kids, time is all about choices.  It’s a limited resource – we can’t create it, we can only choose how to use it.

The Future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of sixty minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is.  ~C.S. Lewis

But what if you could reset your clock?

That used to be easy – whenever I’ve started a new job, I feel like it’s a chance to structure my time differently, within the constraints of set tasks, family and personal responsibilities.

But even then, it’s never clear what’s best.  Read one thing that says “say yes to every invitation, you never know who you’ll meet” but then I’ll read something else that says I should learn to say “no” to more invitations to protect my sanity and family.  Which is it?

With an extra hour, I don’t know whether I should work more, play with my kids, read the Bible, exercise, fix things around the house, or what.  Someone will advocate that each one is most important.  Time marches on.

Closely connected with goals, last week’s topic.

Question: What would you do with an extra hour in the day?  Why?  What would be your goal?

Reminder: The best way to grow spiritually this year is to join our Christianity 101 in the Cafe Course. Register for you and a friend today and come Wednesday night!

Read the Bible in Sync Today

Ryan Sim - February 27, 2014

Thursday - Act On It - Sex and Marriage

Reset

If there is one thing we’ve seen from this week’s exploration of how following Jesus “resets” our views of sex and marriage, it is that we have a choice. Like the Corinthians, we have the physical abilities, biological urge, and even the legal right to engage in whatever sexual activities we can dream up…with very few exceptions, and sometimes even without immediate consequences. In our society today, no one can really stop you – you essentially have the right to do what you want. But Paul was writing to the Corinthian Christians, those who have chosen to follow Jesus and allow him to “reset” their entire lives. They have intentionally chosen to live in God’s kingdom and enjoy its rights, rather than the kingdom of this world and its rights. He wants them and us to see that although we can do almost anything legally in this world, it doesn’t mean we should. It may be lawful in our world, but it isn’t good for us in God’s kingdom. Unlimited sexuality may satisfy a biological urge, but we are more than bodies, we are made in the image of God. We are made for much more than what the Corinthians, or many of us, are settling for while separated from God. But for now, here are some good questions for us all to consider – if you have commited to this journey, or are willing to give it a try – you will have to leave some rights behind, in order to gain all that God offers his children. What is it for you, that you will grieve leaving behind? Or if you’ve been practicing the kingdom for a time, what old way of life do you keep returning to, try as you may? As Paul puts it, what do you need to flee from, in order to be fully free to experience the fullness of life as God intended it? Yes, flee. The false god of sex outside God’s “containers” can get such a hold on us, we actually have to run away from it, as we run towards Jesus. Some baggage can’t come with us, but must be fled. Chances are there is a sexual dimension to all our brokenness, where we fall short of God’s real plans for us and our lives. The solution is not to try harder, be better, etc. but to flee – to leave this world with its rights that may be legal in our society but are ultimately destructive in God’s. Christians set out on a journey with Jesus to the kingdom of God…where we put him at the center of our lives, and start practicing, over time and effort and failure, listening to his guidance in scripture and allowing him to reshape us into what he created us to be in the first place, both our bodies and souls. To do that, you have to flee something, but God promises the destination, even the journey, are far better than we could ever imagine. Challenge: Consider, and discuss with your spouse if married, or a loved one, what sexual brokenness you’ll need to “flee” in order to travel together towards God’s kingdom.

From Series: "Reset"

When our computers get bogged down and unmanageable, we know to hit a reset button to simply start over. Wouldn't a reset button be great in life? We know it would be complicated, with all our responsibilities and routines to consider, but imagine the freedom and refreshment of a new start in life! What would you do differently? What would you pay more attention to, and what would you ignore? How would you avoid getting bogged down and broken again? The great news is, in coming to earth as Jesus Christ, God has begun to "reset" our universe, our world, and even us. We're invited to start over with him, in what he calls his kingdom. We're invited to start a new life with a clean slate. What gets wiped clean, and lived differently, when God resets our lives? We'll explore how God resets these key areas of our lives: Reset: Goals Reset: Time Reset: Money Reset: Work Reset: Body & Food Reset: Sex & Marriage Reset: Family Reset: Compassion Reset: Nature Reset: Society Reset: Death Join us for the next several weeks, and invite God to reset your life.

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