06/08/2026
"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil." — Ephesians 5:15-16
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​If you want to know what someone truly values, don't ask them what they believe. Look at two things: their bank statement and their calendar.
​Most of us live under a common modern illusion. We tell ourselves, "I want to read my Bible more, pray deeper, and share my faith with my friends... I’m just so busy right now. Once things settle down, I'll make the time."
​But let's be honest with ourselves today. The world doesn't just take our time; it steals it. It steals it in tiny, frictionless increments. It’s the five-minute social media check that dissolves into forty-five minutes of mindless scrolling. It’s the automated "next episode" countdown on the TV that turns a quick evening wind-down into a late-night binge. It’s the constant urge to online shop for things we don't need, with money we haven't earned, to impress people we don't even like.
​When we tally it all up, we often spend hours a day resting in the inbox of the world, while giving the Creator of the universe the leftover crumbs of our exhaustion right before we close our eyes at night.
​In Ephesians, the Apostle Paul uses a brilliant financial term when he tells us to "make the most of every opportunity." In the original Greek, that phrase is exagorazo, which means to buy back or to redeem. Paul is telling us that time is a captive. If you do not actively, forcefully buy it back from the world, the world will claim it by default.
​You don't find time for prayer, Scripture, and sharing the Gospel. You have to buy it back from the television, the phone, and the frantic pace of modern life. Today, remember that your schedule is a spiritual ledger. Every hour is an investment. Let's stop giving the world our prime time and God our spare time.
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​What is currently buying up the largest blocks of your attention outside of your basic necessities (like work and sleep)?
​What is one specific "time-thief" you can ruthlessly cut back on today to create space for a conversation with God?
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​Lord, convict my heart today about how I spend the precious minutes You have given me. Forgive me for the hours I waste on things that do not satisfy, while neglecting the living water of Your Word and the urgency of Your Gospel. Give me the wisdom and the discipline to buy back my time today. Let my calendar reflect that You are my first priority, not an afterthought. Amen.