Holy and Faithful

The book of Colossians opens with this:

^"1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

²To the holy and faithful brothers in Christ at Colosse:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father."

Throughout the week i have been thinking through what it would look like to be "holy and faithful", as the believers of Colosse are. I've done so by looking at different categories, the first being time. What might it look like to be "holy and faithful" with ones time? Here are just a few thoughts that i'm going to give a go...

Prioritising - Reading God's word before accessing the distracting world of cyberspace. My natural reaction to turn on the computer when i wake up, throughout the day continuously checking on the happenings of pop culture and society, demonstrates a willingness to be fed by the world rather then urgently reaching for God's word each morning in an on going attempt to extinguish the flame of sin that fights to lead me through the day.

Procrastination - I have come to realise that there are plenty of Godly things we are required to do with our time, these vary due to differing circumstance (eg. work, study, caring for children, dealing with illness, maintaining a home, obeying your parents). There are also plenty of less specific godly things that we are required to do as believers out of an earnest love for one another and our maker (eg. calling people, writing cards, showing hospitality, reading helpful books). Procrastinating and wasting time is like throwing away a resource God has given you to do his work and can often lead to sin.

Discernment - Being "Holy and Faithful" with your time doesn't mean doing everything. Saying yes to every good and Godly thing can mean doing all these things really poorly. If we look at the roles God has placed us in (student, parent, son./daughter, boss, spouse, employee etc.) and follow on from these we are more able to choose wisely the things we must first use our time do to well. This may look less glamorous (sometimes there is something more exciting about being on the church music team, prayer roster, administration committee and youth group program rather then faithfully sitting at home doing your studies, or caring for your own messy family) but it demonstrates a loyalty to true Godliness over a loyalty to keeping up Christian appearances.

Going Cold Turkey - There may be things that get completely cut out of your day,week or life altogether due to their ability distract or drain time (in a way that far outweighs the benefits of said thing), These would be completely different for different people at different stages of life but may include Facebook, TV, magazines, computer games.