Redeeming The Time

I wasn't planning on going to New York for Christmas.  I have several reasons and my parents understood.  Needless to say I ended up coming home because my father is ill.  We believe he has Alzheimer's/dementia. He is not himself and is doing a number of unorthodox things.  My sister Joanne called me frantically and told me I needed to come home before dad forgot who I was if I would have waited months later to come home.  Her phone call is all I needed to motivate me to order my plane ticket.  I have mixed emotions seeing my dad and witnessing a strong man become angry with himself for not remembering small details.  I did not know that on my dad's side of the family there is a history of such illness.  I have soaked up a lot of time with him just sitting around and hanging out.  At times I feel like I'm humoring him when he asks the same question over and over again or is having conversations with me in the wee hours of the morning (like 4-5am) while I'm still sleeping.  All of this has been a wake up call for me in several respects.  The first is I need to cherish the time I get to spend with my dad and other family in the present.  Secondly, I need to recall the things my father has taught me in the past.  Thirdly, I must make the most of my time on this side of heaven/Christ's return.  My third revelation has been on my mind for the past few weeks.  How do I make the most of my time for the Lord by continuing to bring His Kingdom on earth? Maybe I'm over-exaggerating but what if I have 35-45 years left?  I do not want to waste my time but make every minute count.  I believe God has called me to plant Embrace and I do not know what the future holds but I know it doesn't stop at Embrace.  I was reminded of the Apostle Paul's words when he said "…make the most of every opportunity in these evil days."  The KJV translates it as "redeeming the time…" Wesley wrote a sermon, sermon 91, "On Redeeming The Time," and essentially makes the point that a Christian can redeem the time by not oversleeping.  Regardless what spin you take on Ephesians 5:16, it is clear that time is valuable and given to us by God.  We can both pray and wait for change to happen in our churches or we can rise up, pray, and make change happen.