The other day I was watching an episode of The Big Bang Theory. The guys had just bought a time machine from a movie. Penny saw it and told them they were pathetic and devoted too much time to toys and playing games. The only one bothered by it was Leonard, who proceeded to box up all his action figures. As he was taking a box downstairs Penny’s boyfriend showed up and Leonard decided to keep everything.

As I listened to what Penny was telling the guys I thought, how much time do I waste on things that have no eternal value? There is nothing wrong with having a hobby, collecting something, or watching TV (obviously, I was watching TV when these thoughts occurred to me).

James 4:14 says life is a vapor. Ecclesiastes begins by saying everything is vanity, or as the NIV puts it, everything is meaningless. Before you start feeling depressed, realize this is speaking in light of eternity. This is a good reminder for all of us as God blesses us in our lives. We need to remember that eternity without the Father renders all blessing in this life meaningless. 

Think about the following words that Jesus spoke to His disciples in Luke 10:1-6 TLV “Now after these things, the Lord assigned seventy others and sent them out by twos before Him into every town and place where He Himself was about to go. ² And He was telling them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore, beg the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest. ³ “Go forth! Look, I am sending you as lambs in the midst of wolves. ⁴ Do not be burdened with a money belt, travel bag, or shoes; and do not greet anyone along the way. ⁵ Whatever home you enter, first say, “Shalom be on this home.” ⁶ If a son of shalom is there, your shalom will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.” The narrative continues in verse seventeen, “Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Master, even the demons submit to us in Your name!” ¹⁸ And Yeshua said to them, “I was watching satan fall like lightning from heaven. ¹⁹ Behold, I have given you authority to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. ²⁰ Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names have been written in the heavens.”

Jesus wanted them to focus on eternity, not the power they had in the here and now. Jesus promised in Matthew chapter six that He would take care of us as long as we seek the Kingdom first. Paul wrote, my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. We have multiple promises in the Bible for our provision. We can enjoy the things of this life with our eyes set on eternity. We need to live in the now for eternity. Use the blessings you have for eternity. Enjoy your hobbies and find a way for them to have an impact on eternity.

It is so easy for us to see our lives as the main thing. All our senses are tuned in to what is going on in our lives. We cannot see heaven, so naturally, it fades from our thinking, but when we fix our eyes on Jesus, we cannot help but live our lives with eternity in view.