This can happen to any one of you as well. You can be so busy going to school and rushing to class, that you take no time to be holy. You can be so busy working on some project on the job or around the house that you leave no time to work on your relationship with God. You may come out to church on a regular basis, and you may only get out on an occasional basis; and I tell you that you cannot become all that God wants you to become when you work on a schedule like that. In order to be the holy and righteous people that God wants us to be, we need to maintain an ongoing contact with God. This is what the Bible means by the abundant life. It is a life that is solidly connected to God in ways that allow us to filter out those things that can hurt and destroy us, and hold onto those things that can be a blessing in our lives.

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Like many of you, perhaps, I have switched to one of those battery operated tooth brushes that has bristles that move up and down and in a circular motion all at the same time and at a high rate of speed. I must confess that it does seem to work better than the old-fashioned practice of actually brushing my teeth with a regular brush. However, there are two spiritual lessons I have learned from battery operated toothbrushes. The first one is that they do not work if you do not put a battery in the handle. The secret to the brush is not in the bristles or in the handle; the secret is in the power that comes from the battery. That is what drives the brushes to clean the teeth. If there is no battery on the inside, nothing is going to happen on the outside.

That is true of tooth brushes, and it is just as true of the human soul. We are not self-made and self-sustaining creations. We are made in the image and likeness of God. We are shaped by God’s hand and animated by God’s spirit. Jesus says in John 15, “I am the vine and you are the branches; apart from me, you can do nothing.” We need to take time to be with God and to build ourselves up in the faith and to pray, because if we do not this sinful world will surely suck us in and then pull us down. However, I have learned another lesson from the battery operated tooth brush, and it is that it is not enough to insert a battery inside the handle if the battery does not maintain a constant connection with the positive and negative contacts on the inside of the handle. The first time I had to change the battery in my tooth brush, which seems to be necessary quite often by the way, I pushed the on button and nothing happened. The batteries were both in the right location, but for some reason I could not get the bottom of the handle to reconnect solidly. The batteries were not solidly connecting with the contacts, and as result the bristles could not operate, the tooth paste could not be applied and the brushing that I needed could not be performed. The battery was close to the contact, but it was not a solid connection.

Is there anybody here today who is close to God, who comes to church and attends Bible study, but you are not maintaining a solid connection. It is not enough to be in the building if you are not in the spirit. It is not enough to be in an auxiliary if you are not in the spirit. It is not enough to be a church officer or a church worker, if you are not also engaged in worship and prayer and praise. Ushers; it is not enough to stand by the door if you have not opened the door of your own heart to Christ. Choir members, it is not enough to sing the words if you do not believe them in your own heart. Preachers and deacons, it is not enough to preach to and pray for others if we are not allowing the intimacy of prayer and the power of the word of God to nourish our souls as well.

Time is the one thing that we can least afford to waste. Of all the things that can occupy and consume our time, we need to be sure that we are leaving time for the things that matter the most; our heads, our health, our homes and our holiness.

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