The Importance of Time

Where did you come from? The answer is obvious.

Ps 100:3 – It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

If every second of our existence is a gift from God, then we are accountable to Him for how we spend that time. Thus, the value of our time is beyond computation; it is the totality of our existence. We have been given this time to treasure, to improve our condition, to bless others, to give glory to our Creator, and to eventually vindicate the character of God in response to the charges of Satan. We are very important in God’s plans. Do we have a right to trifle away our time? “Every moment is freighted with eternal consequences” (COL 343).

It is not my job to tell you what the appropriate ways are to spend your time, but I encourage all to consider this subject, seeking the Holy Spirit to guide you. Nevertheless, some activities are obviously not improving the gift of life. For example, pursuing a fantasy life in novels, movies, and TV shows not only does not uplift, but it also destroys us with worldliness. When I hear people say, “I’m just killing time,” I cringe. There is not enough time to kill any of it.

We must also recognize that stewardship of our time does not mean restricting ourselves to only Bible study, worship, and witnessing. There are many secular things that are obviously necessary in this life: working for a living, recreation, self-education on the issues of life, and more. I think a rule of thumb to help guide is that we have no time to waste, no time to devote to selfish pleasure, no time for the indulgence of sin. We are preparing for an eternity that is infinitely more important than anything else we might be pursuing.

We all have individual limitations in how we live our lives; I certainly do in my current condition. Yet within those limitations, we must all chose to spend our time on that which enhances our spiritual, mental, and physical condition. We must all seek activities that will advance the kingdom of God. We must all seek to be a blessing to others. We must all choose that which enriches life, ennobles the character, and makes us more useful to our Creator. Furthermore, we must all vigorously shun those activities that detract from our preparation for eternity. Imagine the improvement in our spiritual condition if each of us did a self-assessment of the way we spend our time and seek God’s help to improve our time efficiency for His kingdom.

Finally, while a certain amount of planning for the future is essential, the actual management of our time takes place “today.” We should not obsess about the future in our worrying thoughts and prayers. We cannot manage our time months and years ahead, because the Lord has not yet given us that time. This one day, “today,” is all we have with which to work. During “today,” we should work for ourselves and our families as though it were our last. “Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matt 6:34).