April 09, 2015

Never Enough Time?

It seems that I’m always crunched for time. Well, maybe not always, just for the past 30 years or so. One of my ever-present fantasies is that I would only need two hours of sleep every night. Imagine that! An extra five or six hours a day to get stuff done! That would even leave some time to kick back and read more books! In pondering this desire for more time, though, it struck me that God has designed the 7 day week, the 24 hour day, and my need for sleep. Given that fact, should I really be desirous of something God has not designed and is therefore not best for me? Or should I be learning something here? (I like to ask myself easy questions; life is simpler that way.)

So what should I be learning here? Lots of things that I don’t seem to have time to do are good and necessary. Spring yard work, home maintenance, reading good books, exercise, spending time with people, washing the car, and lots more are all on the list but I just can’t get to many of them. It would be good to do them all, but I can’t, so how should I respond? I think the answer is simply to grow in godly wisdom. How so?

Well, Ephesians 5:15-17 says, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” God tells us to make the best use of our time, meaning we have to make choices. And to make wise choices, we have to “understand what the will of the Lord is.” When I have too much to do then, I have to figure out God’s will for the best use of my time. What is God’s will?

I can tell one aspect of His will by looking at Ephesians 5:33 and Philippians 2:3-4, which tell me to love my wife as myself and to consider other’s interests as more important than my own; so perhaps I need to look at my “to-do” list and ask my wife what she considers most important. I can also look at Matthew 6:33, and ask myself if I am “seeking first the kingdom of God”? Maybe preparing a Sunday School lesson, counseling, or sharing the gospel with an acquaintance?

It’s impossible to go through the “to-do” list item by item, but the principle is this – at the beginning of the day, have I tried to be wise with my time by prioritizing according to God’s revealed will (e.g., Scripture)? At the end of the day, can I say that I have made “the best use of the time”? Am I OK with the things left undone because the things that were done were chosen wisely? If not, it’s time to think a little harder about Scriptural priorities and grow a little more in wisdom.

So, I may still feel crunched for time. But instead of getting frustrated and simply day-dreaming about having more time, I’ll ask God to help me make the best use of the time that I do have. I’ll realize that time constraints are meant to help me become wise and I’ll rest well, knowing that it’s simply wisdom to leave some things undone.