“For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven” (NLT). This passage of scripture was penned by the wisest man outside of Jesus Christ to ever walk the earth. His name was King Solomon and God so graciously gifted him with wisdom. This, in my opinion, was one of the most valuable scriptures the Lord ever used him to write. Time, in and of itself, is quite frankly something we humans have a hard time managing. It’s literally out of our control. We didn’t invent time. God did. It belongs to Him.
Because we are all afflicted with humanity, our gracious God broke time up into increments. We have years, months, days, hours, etc. He knew our finite minds could only handle so much. We all come from different backgrounds. We all have different obligations. We are all involved with different careers and have different financial situations. One thing, however, that we all have in common, if we were able to wake up this morning, is time. It’s the same 24 hours for royalty as it is for the common man. What we choose to do with that time is the difference maker.
A great story to teach about time management in the Bible involves two sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha was a busy bee! She had work to be done and she was tackling it head on. Jesus was a guest in her home and Mary decided just to sit with Jesus and absorb all He had to offer in the amount of time they had together. This upset Martha because she wanted her help. She actually got frustrated and asked Jesus to tell Mary to help her. In Luke 10, Jesus answers and says, “Martha, Martha, you are worried about many things. But One thing is needed, and Mary has chosen the good part, which will not be taken away from her.” Was Jesus being unfair to Martha? Of course not!! He knew time was of the essence. He would only be with them a little while. The chores would always be there. How many of us ignore the most precious relationships in our lives in favor of checking off our “to do” list?
Jesus handles time management in another passage that I find interesting. Matthew records Him saying in chapter 6, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring about it’s own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Obviously, we need to take a closer look at how we’re dealing with time. The Bible has a lot to say about it. Are we being good stewards with the time allowed us?
Then there’s the waiting! We’ve been praying about certain issues and trying to make mountains move for what seems like forever! One thing I know for sure – God is NOT a genie in a bottle. He’s going to handle matters entirely on His timetable, not ours. Don’t get discouraged waiting on that breakthrough. If it’s important to you, it’s important to Him. He is doing all the behind the scenes preparations that most of the time we don’t see. So we try to step in and make things happen in our own strength that only He can do. In Isaiah chapter 40 it says, “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.” We, as Americans, do not like to wait. We have a microwave mentality. God doesn’t tell us we have to wait, but He clearly lays out the goodness reaped if we let Him have His way.
Next is “forever.” Some of us seem to think that we have forever here on this earth. Not true! We didn’t choose our check-in date and I’m pretty sure we don’t get to pick check-out. Don’t put off what God’s asking you to do. Be obedient to His promptings. Make sure not to waste this precious gift. Time is precious. We don’t get yesterday back.
This is the Master’s plan. He doesn’t want us worn out, stressed out or tapping out! He wants us in the game taking things day by day. All the while knowing that He’s the Creator of time and yes-He knows what all you have to do! Trust the One who invented time with your’s. It’s amazing what can be accomplished if you get Him involved!! There will truly be a time for everything.
Today’s writer is Brandi Crowe. A hairdresser for over 25 years, she is currently the owner of Brandi Crowe salon in Buford, GA. She loves hiking, a good cup of coffee and spending time with family and friends. Brandi lives in a custom farmhouse with her husband, Robby and cat, Harold.
