Watch therefore,
for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
Matthew 25:13
LORD Jesus, we praise You for You are the God of hosts, Master over all the earth and LORD over all space and time. Hallelujah! Forgive us, O God, whenever we fail to trust that Your Way is the best Way, and Your Timing is the best Timing. When storm clouds gather, help us not to be afraid of the unknown, but that we would trust You in all of life—good times and bad times. And when things are working out in the most wonderful way, help us not to forget our God—the God who has made it all possible and the One who has made a way for us when there seemed to be no way. Enable us to use the time that You have given to each one us for Your glory. In Jesus’ precious name we pray. Amen.
Time management is something that I have been wrestling with over the past months, yes, even over these past few years. During the lockdown madness, time seemed to slow down. Now, post-lockdowns, however, time seems to be passing by in a much greater speed than ever before. Is it any wonder that people are having a hard time establishing a good working routine again? Well, it may or may not be the case in your life, but I have to admit that it is so in my own life. Feeling the same way? Then please do keep on coming back because we will be talking more about life before, during, and after lockdown in future posts.
Today, though, I want to share another lesson with you. It is something I have learned while wrestling to create a working schedule—a schedule that is not only looking good on paper, but one that is actually going to work out.
How do you schedule your time? Perhaps like I used to do?
- I made a list of all the tasks that needed to be done during each week.
- I took the list and rearranged it: the most important things (priorities) to the top, followed by the lesser important ones.
- I tried to schedule the tasks, placing them into a fine looking weekly planner.
It is always, however, going in the wrong direction. Meaning, the schedule usually looks great on paper, but most of the time it fails to work out.
“O God, will You help me, please?”
Are time schedules important to Him—the One who is the Master over space and time and all? Who am I to ask the LORD for specific directions on how to manage my time?
Finally, yes, finally, I did cry out to the LORD, “O God, help me to create a working schedule.” Did He answer me? You bet, He did! But, as it is most often the case, His answer was not what I had expected. Instead, He asked me how exactly I’m going about in scheduling my tasks and hours. Let me share what I have come up with:
First, I find out how many tasks there are to do for me. Then, I find out how I can fit them into the hours of my week. Hm…
Let’s compare this to what the LORD has put on my heart:
First, know that you were given that much time, these hours, of God. Then, find out how you can use them for Him—for His glory and not for your own name’s sake.
Using what God has given to us—time included—for His glory and not for our own pleasure, that will be the topic of Thursday’s blog.
Watch therefore, for Christ the LORD could come today.