Daily Success
Institute in Basic Life Principles

Command 13 : Lay Up Treasures | Day 88

Value Your Greatest Asset!

Huge amounts of money are often spent on medical care in the final weeks of one's life. This speaks of the incredible efforts to extend life for even a short amount of time. Time is truly our most valuable asset, because it can never be recovered. Without time we would have no capability to earn money or enjoy the things for which we have worked.

Time is a valuable asset that attracts many robbers.

Most of us don't realize just how valuable time is, nor do we recognize the robbers that steal it from us. One of the few recollections that I have from grammar school is a poem I learned in the fifth grade: "Lost, yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered for they are gone forever."

God affirms the great importance of time when He instructs us to redeem the time because the days are evil. (See Ephesians 5:16.) How do we redeem our time? In order to redeem a coupon, we must turn it in for something of greater value. The same must be done with time.

First, we must receive each day as a gift from God and recognize that we will give an account to Him for how we spend our time. Next, we should evaluate the activities in which we are involved and determine if they are the most worthwhile ways to invest our time. Finally, by listing our daily responsibilities, we can look for ways to be more efficient in carrying them out.

For example, if we save just 20 minutes a day as a result of greater efficiency, we will have three full 40-hour work weeks added to each year! Based on this, think of how much extra time we would have if we eliminated an hour of unproductive activity each day!

When it comes to time and activities, the "good" things in life are the enemies of the "best" things in life.

The Apostle Paul did not say, "Choose things that are good," but rather, "Approve things that are excellent” (Philippians 1:10). Regarding the use of time, the best counsel I ever received came from Jack Hamilton, who helped initiate Bible quizzing.

Jack befriended me as a teenager and one day said, "Bill, when you get to high school, ask yourself two questions before getting involved in any extracurricular activity. First, will this activity count ten years from now? And second, will it count for eternity?" He went on to explain the significance of considering these two questions. "Picture yourself plowing the first furrow in a field. In order to make it straight, you must line up two distant objects, such as a fence post and a distant tree. When these two line up as one, you will know you are plowing a straight line. If they become divided, you are on a crooked path."

As I made choices based on the answers to these questions, I was able to spend more time doing significant things for the Lord, such as presenting the Gospel to every classmate during my high-school years. Because of these choices, I have experienced the joy of lasting rewards. I urge you to evaluate the activities in which you are currently involved by asking yourself, "Will this count in 10 years?" and "Will it matter for eternity?"

“... Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven ... For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also ...” (Matthew 6:19-21).

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Contributing writer: Bill Gothard