Make the Most of the Opportunity

“Make the most of the opportunity” — Ephesians 5:16.

Two short words appear here in the Greek text: ton kairon. They literally mean “the opportunity.” In the revised translation, the thought is expressed as “buying up the opportunity for yourselves.”

This does not refer to time in general, but to a particular moment: a turning point, a critical occasion, an opportunity full of possibilities that quickly passes. We must seize it and make the most of it before it is gone.

Such moments are few, because the days are evil. They are like a flower you find here and there in a barren desert—pick it while you can. Or like a business opportunity that comes only a few times in a lifetime—take it while you have the chance.

Stay spiritually alert. Do not act foolishly, but discern the will of God. “Be careful how you live: not as the foolish, but as the wise, making the most of the opportunity.”

Sometimes it is a moment that can be saved from being wasted. Sometimes it is a person who can be led to Christ. Sometimes it is an opportunity to show love or patience. At other times, it is an opportunity to overcome temptation and sin.

Let us make the most of that opportunity.