A Time For Every
Purpose
Scriptures: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8;
Matthew 10:37-39; Colossians 4:5; Luke 19:12-27; Psalms 90:9-10;
Psalms 103:13-16; Hebrews 9:27
My watch rules my life, in far too many ways.
Every day of every week, even on vacation to some extent, I do
things according to a schedule. I have a workday schedule, a
Saturday schedule, and a Sunday schedule, and these vary by only a
few minutes from one week to the next. There are times, to overuse
the word, when my watch leaves my wrist, usually when a watchband
breaks or a battery dies. When that happens, I find myself
constantly checking my wrist for that nonexistent timepiece. To say
I am a clock-watcher understates the case.
Control freak that I am, I've always prided
myself on making good use of the available time to complete
assigned tasks. I move through life from goal to goal, from task to
task. While that may seem desirable to some people, it drives
others crazy. For those who prefer to "go with the flow," instead
of directing the flow, the notion of having to stick to a strict
schedule brings high anxiety. Put me in a situation where there are
no definite boundaries, and no discernable goals, and I experience
a bit of stress myself.
Time is one of the most precious gifts God has
given us. The amount we are allotted, at least this side of glory,
is strictly limited. As some point out, the only time we can be
certain we have is today, or that part of today we're experiencing
right now. Our community was deeply saddened recently when one of
our most promising local businessmen, father of an eleven-year old
girl and a loving husband, was killed in a tragic car accident. He
was 37 years old, and had recently finished building a magnificent
house. Death came to him and five other people in an instant of
time. The only consolation for his remaining family, and the best
consolation, is that he was a Christian, and is now with Christ.
There are multitudes of people who die every year who have no such
consolation, but face eternity in Hell.
Solomon, writing as The Preacher in
Ecclesiastes, said there is a time for everything. Many busy
people, including far too many Christians, have trouble accepting
that idea. One of the common excuses people make when someone asks
them to do something in the church or another Christian ministry
is, "I don't have time," or "I'm too busy." Most people who say
this are telling the truth; they really don't have the time. When,
however, we reach the point that we don't have time to serve God in
something he (as opposed to people) calls us to do, we need to
stand back and look at where all the time goes. Just as with our
checkbooks, how we spend our time tells where our priorities
lie.
It's not that anything we do is bad, in itself;
it's just that sometimes we settle for the good, and give up the
best. Devoting time to our children, or our spouses, or our civic
clubs, is certainly not bad. If, however, any area of our lives
demands so much of our time we don't have time left for God, then
God doesn't have first place in our lives. Anything, or anyone,
that we rank ahead of the Lord in life is an idol. We can be the
world's best husband or wife, mother or father, or employee, and
still be very bad Christians.
There is no set standard in the Bible for what
portion of our time we should spend in God's service, but the
standard for giving is the tithe. Just as with giving money, the
amount of time we give has to be something we're at peace with. We
shouldn't expect to be blessed by following some formula rather
than giving freely as we are able. Once I was content to attend
church services, sing in choir, and perform brief daily
devotionals. Eventually, I added work in the Gideon ministry and
teaching a Sunday school class, and that seemed more than enough.
Now I may devote two or three hours a day to study and prayer,
writing and praise, and I find that that's not nearly enough for
me. I can't judge what's right for you; that's between you and
God.
Try this, as a kind of self test. Take out a
blank sheet of paper, and block out your schedule for a given week.
Be as detailed as you can. When you're finished, group all of your
activities into categories, and see how much time you spend on
each. This should give you a clear picture of the things you
consider most important in your life. Few of us will find we devote
as much time to God's service as we do to our jobs, unless our job
is to serve God. I certainly don't. But, also look at your
leisure time, that time you call your own. When you add together
your devotional times, church attendance, and Christian service,
how do these totals compare to, say, the time you spend at school
and athletic activities?
Redeem the time, the Bible says. Every moment
you enjoy as a Christian was purchased by the blood of Christ; make
the most of it. Occupy, Jesus said, until I come.
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