Read 1 Peter 4:7–11
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and selfcontrolled
so that you can pray.
1 Peter 4:7
My wife and I were in Nairobi, Kenya, where I would be ministering
to several hundred national pastors at an Africa Inland Mission
conference. We were very excited about the conference even though
we were a bit weary from the long journey. We could hardly wait to
get started, and the leader of the conference detected our impatience.
“You are in Africa now,” he said to me in a fatherly fashion, “and
the first thing you want to do is put away your watch.”
In the days that followed we learned the wisdom of his words.
Unfortunately, when we returned to the States, we found ourselves
caught up again in the clockwork prison of deadlines and schedules.
Peter had a great deal to say about time. Awareness of his own
impending martyrdom might have had something to do with this
(John 21:15–19; 2 Peter 1:12ff.). Whether Jesus comes first, or death
comes first, we want to make “the rest of [our] time” (1 Peter 4:2 KJV)
count for eternity. And we can!
Something to Ponder
What spiritual goals do you have that you hope to accomplish before
your own death?