Using Our Time for God

             Americans seem obsessed with time management. Go inside any bookstore these days and take a look at the self-help section. Franklin Covey, Day Planner, and other companies make millions on providing tips for prioritizing and scheduling. We seem to have so many priorities in life that it is almost impossible to juggle them all. And yet, many of us brag about our ability to multitask. We even multitask while on vacation. Instead of using precious time to rest, relax, and recharge, we jam pack activity after activity; and when we return home we complain that we need a vacation from our vacation!

What is the cure? How do we manage one of our most precious nonrenewable resources? God’s self-help book, the Bible, contains some practical answers. What must we realize if we are to redeem the time in a way that glorifies God?

Time is a precious gift from God and must be used wisely. Time is an element that is intricately associated with everything we do in this life. We cannot create it. We cannot get it back once it has been spent. Therefore we must take it to heart and exhibit wisdom. Teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom, Psalm 90:12. How do we exercise wisdom with the time we have?

The key lies in proper prioritizing and planning. Sit down and make a list of the top priorities in your life. Which one should be first? Jesus has placed the spiritual at the top. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you, Matthew 6:33. Family, career, and other priorities must come after the spiritual. Once you have your priorities in place, take a few moments at the beginning of each week and plan around these priorities. Make a daily “to do” sheet that lists out tasks one by one. You can choose how much detail to place on the daily list. Place some small tasks on the list, and as you go through the day, mark them off as they are completed. You will be amazed at how much better you feel when you are able to look at what you have accomplished.

            We must learn to say “no.” If “no” is not possible, then we must find a way to work the urgent items around the top priorities in life. Spiritual and family priorities must be nonnegotiable. Some things in life, no matter how urgent, amount to little in the overall scheme of things.

            Make time to be holy! Build some time in your life where you concentrate on the spiritual. Your eternity depends on it! Be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil, Ephesians 5:15-16.