Making the Most of Your Opportunities
“Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.”
Ephesians 5:16 (NLT)
One of the characteristics of successful people is that they don’t waste time. They make the most of every opportunity, regardless of the circumstances. How do you do that? One of my Bible heroes is Paul, the apostle. He was a giant in the faith! When he wrote to the Christ followers in Ephesus and challenged them to make the most of every opportunity, he provided an example for them through his own life.
At the time he penned these words, he was in prison for sharing the gospel with others. Despite being chained to Roman guards with limited to no freedom, he saw opportunity before him and made the most of it. Since he could no longer travel in his missionary journeys to the churches he established or pioneer new ones, he uses the time in prison to write letters to those churches that became much of our New Testament today. They are called “the prison epistles or letters”. And when he asked for prayer in these letters, it is striking to me that he never requests them to pray that he may be released from prison or that his chains would be removed, but that he would continue to speak fearlessly about Jesus despite them.
Then, in another prison letter to the church in Philippi, his pages radiate with joy! How could he remain so joyful and find opportunity amid such difficult and restricting circumstances? Being unfairly imprisoned would cause most of us to give up or become bitter, but Paul saw it as one more opportunity to share the Good News of Christ! When you compare two of the letters that Paul writes from prison, you discover how he does it. The Life Application Bible shares this insight: “Paul realized that his current circumstances weren’t as important as what he did with them. … God can use us in any circumstance to do His will. Even as we pray for a change in our circumstances, we should also pray that God will accomplish His plan through us right where we are.” I love the way Oswald Chambers puts it in his classic devotional, My Utmost for His Highest. He writes, “Prayer is the battle; it is a matter of indifference where you are. Whichever way God engineers circumstances, the duty is to pray. Never allow the thought – ‘I am no use where I am;’ because you certainly can be of no use where you are not.”
If you want to make the most of every opportunity, even in these evil days, consider that your current circumstances are not as important as what you do with them. Seize the day! Pray! Look for where God is at work, learn to adapt, and your joy will overflow!
Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board, or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.
Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.