I once visited a village in Uganda where the residents had never touched money (they just bartered) and had no sense of time.

I thought to myself: I wonder how these people make decisions. They must have some criteria, but it’s not time and money.

Have you ever made a decision without considering time and money? Or are they the first gods you consult?

It is interesting that there are people living on the planet right now who are free from those constraints. OK, not by choice, but still, they are free.

We live in a world where we’ve put our trust in Time and Money. “Just give it some more time”, “time heals all wounds”, “If only I had more money”, or “at least we’ve got our savings”.

What if we deliberately rejected the rulers of this age and put our trust in God? What if we made decisions that lined up with God’s will, not bowing to Time and Money? What if we lived like we are citizens of the kingdom of heaven?

The early church started as a rapidly growing group of people who spent every day together and shared all their possessions with each other.

Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. – Acts 2:41-47

They were free to give away their time and money because they accepted Peter’s message and rejected the world’s gods. These are the verses just before the above description:

“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” – Acts 2:38-40