"I don't have enough time" is a common complaint. There just does not seem to be enough time to participate in everything we would like to do. Our days, weeks and months blur as yet another year races into becoming history. Although it seems like the summer has just begun, soon only memories and the results of wherever we have invested our time will be left in the wake of summer.
Paul counseled Christians to "be careful how you live; not as unwise, but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:15-16 Our days, weeks and months pass by and we can never get them back.
How can I make the most of my time? Although different people will respond with various answers, one thing is certain. Each answer will be based upon each person's own understanding of "who I am" and "what my goal in life should be."
For us who seek to follow Jesus, our response to this practical question should arise out of what we have learned in Christ regarding who we are and His goal for our lives. A concise illustration of the relationship between our self-understanding and our goal is illustrated well by 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body."
If we widen the scope of our lens from a single verse to the development of ideas within the canvas of a letter, again we find the definition of the contours for purposeful activity arising out of our identity. Paul wrote that although we were once dead in sin and characterized by darkness, through God's power and mercy we have now become children of light! Ephesians 2:1-6; 5:8 With this new identity as God's workmanship came an infusion of divinely ordained purposes. To spend our time wisely will involve doing good works, seeking the will of the Lord and living with lives characterized by light. Ephesians 2:10; 5:8-10, 17
On another occasion Paul paralleled foundational aspects of Christian security and identity alongside that of the ancient Israelites to teach the Corinthian disciples how they should and should not spend their time. His message to them was that if they wished to avoid the same fate experienced by many in Israel, they should accordingly avoid idolatry, immorality and testing the Lord. In contrast to such misdirected activities they were to pursue the goal of "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:1-31 To spend time wisely involves bringing glory to God.
As disciples following Jesus, God's Word should be shaping how we perceive ourselves and God's goal for us thus causing us to use our time wisely. Jesus told a parable about a man who did not use his time wisely. He took the resources his master provided him and simply buried them. In the end, he had not fulfilled his purpose. His master then cast him out into the darkness. The days, weeks, and months go by and we cannot get them back. Use them wisely.
Barry Newton, Copyright © 2001
Other Articles Which Might Be of Interest
Who Are You? (Searching for a foundation for identity)
When God Says, "You Belong to Me" (Identifying God's people)
Is Salvation An Insurance Policy? (Goal of consumerism verses discipleship)