WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
OCTOBER 15, 2024
TOPIC: AVOID RESTING AT THE WRONG TIME
BY T. O. BANSO
“I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work” (John 9:4 New King James Version).
There is time for everything on earth. There is time to work and there is time to rest. Someone should not be resting when he is supposed to be working. Proverbs 10:5 says, “He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame” (New King James Version).
Life is in phases and seasons. There is a time when we must work, and we don’t have all the time in the world. If we work when we’re supposed to work, we shall be able to enjoy a well-deserved rest. But when a man enjoys premature rest instead of working, he’ll suffer later. Beware of engaging in pleasure when you’re supposed to be working, feasting when you’re supposed to be fasting. The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eats little or much (Ecclesiastes 5:12a).
In ministry, business, or any human pursuit, there is a time for you to labour – you cannot afford to be resting or sleeping then. It is a time for you to invest or sow seeds; the time to rest will come when you begin to harvest the fruits of the seed you have sown (Genesis 8:22). God first worked for six days before He rested (Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:11).
But God didn’t even take a permanent rest because Exodus 31:17 says in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed. In other words, God ceased or stopped creating because He had completed the work of creation. That does not mean God didn’t work again. Jesus said, “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working” (John 5:17 New King James Version). The New Living Translation renders it thus: “My Father is always working, and so am I.” God “rested” on the seventh day not because He was tired (God can never get tired, as Isaiah 40:28 says) but as an example for us to follow.
Don’t rest too soon! God has given you the strength to work now; work wisely. He has given you light now – utilize it before it becomes dark. Jesus says, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work” (John 9:4 New King James Version).
Do the right thing at the right time. Get your priorities right. Don’t put the cart before the horse. “Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty!” (Proverbs 14:23 New Living Translation).
If God is still working, as Jesus said in John 5:17, who are you to be resting, when you are supposed to be working? That is laziness and destructive pleasure. “Those who love pleasure become poor; those who love wine and luxury will never be rich” (Proverbs 21:17 New Living Translation).
Rest but at the right time. Look at the story of the young prophet. While he was resting prematurely, the devil caught up with him through the old prophet (1 Kings 13:14-19). If he had kept going rather than sitting under an oak resting, the tragedy that happened to him wouldn’t have happened. The old prophet who deceived him was the same person who prophesied God’s judgment upon him (verses 20-25).
Think about David. Would he have committed adultery with Bathsheba if he had not stayed back at his home, resting instead of going to war? Certainly not (2 Samuel 11:1-5). One sin led to another. Failure to go to war, abdicating his responsibility, led to adultery. And because he wanted to cover up adultery, he committed murder. Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost more than you are willing to pay.
What this sin cost David was huge. “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun” (2 Samuel 12:11-12 New King James Version). Though he confessed his sin, and God forgave him, He didn’t cancel or suspend the principle of sowing and reaping regarding his sin, for whatever a man sows, he will reap (Galatians 6:7).
The Prophet Nathan said to David after he had admitted his guilt: “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die” (2 Samuel 12:13-14 New King James Version). That didn’t free him from the consequences of his sin. He was only saved from death, which would have been part of the punishment for his sin.
Is it time for you to rest? Isaiah said for Jerusalem’s sake he would not rest until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns (Isaiah 62:1). Avoid resting at the wrong time. Rest is good and necessary but is this the right time for it? Naomi told Ruth, “Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won’t rest until he has settled things today” (Ruth 3:18 New Living Translation). Don’t rest until it is the right time.
Make the best use of your time. Don’t rest until you have settled what you need to. “Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do” (Ephesians 5:16-17 New Living Translation). Verse 15 says, “So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise” (New Living Translation).
Be wise! If laziness wants you to rest when it’s not time for it, deal with it. “Those too lazy to plow in the right season will have no food at the harvest” (Proverbs 20:4 New Living Translation). Note the phrase “plow in the right season.” There is a season to plow, and a season to rest from plowing. Rest is necessary, but you can do the right thing at the wrong time. “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest; So shall your poverty come like a prowler, and your need like an armed man” (Proverbs 24:33-34 New King James Version).
Maybe a sense of arrival makes you rest when the time is not yet ripe for it – you must stop it. Beware of complacency and its consequences. “Rise up, you women who are at ease, Hear my voice; You complacent daughters, Give ear to my speech. In a year and some days You will be troubled, you complacent women; for the vintage will fail, the gathering will not come. Tremble, you women who are at ease; be troubled, you complacent ones; strip yourselves, make yourselves bare, and gird sackcloth on your waists” (New King James Version). Proverbs 1:32b says, “The complacency of fools will destroy them” (New King James Version). Don’t rest when it’s not right; don’t destroy yourself.
Don’t be deceived by whatever you’ve achieved. Are you sure that is all God’s plan for you? At a time Paul had achieved so much in the ministry, he said he was not resting on his laurels but pressing forward. “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14 New International Version). That should be your attitude.
The Prophet Elisha asked Gehazi after returning from his pursuit of Naaman, “Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants?” (2 Kings 5:26b New King James Version). The consequence was the leprosy of Naaman that came on him and his descendants forever. Have you ever read of the Prophet Gehazi in the Bible? He didn’t become a prophet. Elisha asked, “Is it time to receive money?” But God is asking you now: “Is it time to rest?” Maintain a proper balance between work and rest whatever your calling is.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. Take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner, and cannot save yourself, and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You must join a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Holy Spirit, deliver me from premature rest or resting at the wrong time. Help me to work at the right time and rest at the appropriate time.
(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
