TIME and ETERNITY

God gives every one of us the same 24 hours in a day to accomplish all that needs to be done. He expects us to make good use of the time He gives us each day, not wasting any of it. So how do we make the best of the time He gives us? I'm glad you asked. From God's perspective, the best use of our time should be devoted to eternal purposes. In other words, during the course of the day, our thoughts, deeds and words need to be focused on how we can impact others for eternity.

There are people God has placed in each of our lives that He wants us to witness to in some way, and through our witness, point them to Jesus Christ. Now you may think to yourself, “How can I lead others to Christ? I'm too busy”. The answer is that we can draw others to Christ in our consistent, silent, daily witness. You do not have to necessarily say a word about Christ to anyone in the beginning, but the way you conduct yourself, especially when the heat is on, speaks volumes about your relationship with Jesus & how seriously you take it. You see, God does not waste anything, and He is not about to place us in places and situations where we cannot be a witness for Him. You may think otherwise, but I challenge you to take a step back and examine your daily routine and see if there are not witnessing opportunities that are all about you. Even if you work in ministry as I do, you have the opportunity to encourage other Christians as you come in contact with them each day.

In Ecclesiastes, Solomon wrote a lot about time. At the time he wrote this book he was in his mid sixties, so he had seen and experienced a lot, in his time. Much of his life experience comes out in Ecclesiastes, and he ponders the burden God has placed on man in what seems to be pointless and meaningless struggle and labor. Solomon writes there is a predetermined divinely appointed time for everything that happens. God, in His sovereignty, set the cycles of life on this planet in motion and He governs over them perfectly. To the unbeliever, those that believe we evolved from lower forms of life, the cycles of life even today appear to be pointless and meaningless. So the Epicurean's live their life with the motto, “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die”. While on the other hand, Solomon tells us in Ecclesiastes 3:12-14 I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere Him.

Solomon's point and the difference between the Epicurean's and Christians on the meaning of life & wrestling with time is a perspective on eternity. The Epicurean's perspective is short and focused on self. Get what you can for yourself today because you may not be around tomorrow. Our perspective should be an eternal one, driven by our desire to please God in our daily lives knowing that at the end of our earthly existence we will stand before Him and give an account for ourselves. Solomon understood this very well and gives us the perspective that God wants us to enjoy life and the work that He gives us to do. I encourage you to prayerfully read Ecclesiastes 3:1-14.

So what does this have to do with time management in the 21 st century? It's a simple concept and one we must all learn to master if we do not want to be mastered by time. We see in Ecclesiastes 3:1-14 that God has arranged the cycles of life. Your days are a cycle, bound by the constraints of linear time. We cannot escape the confines of linear time, but we can learn how to use these boundaries not only to our advantage, but to the glory of God for eternal purposes. In doing so, God can change our attitude about many things. Recognize that the job you go to is a missionary field, and allow the Holy Spirit to direct you in how to reach the unreachable and unlovable for Christ. Remember, Christ died for them just as surely as He died for you. It may not be easy and it may even be uncomfortable at times. But God is not interested in our comfort; He is interested in our availability to be used by Him to reach others.

Be mindful that every person you come in contact with each day needs Jesus in their lives. It is vitally important to their eternity that you somehow share Jesus with those the Holy Spirit prompts you to, even if it is only in kindness which can lead to conversation at some point. When lost people see and experience the love of Christ, when you go out of your way to do a kind thing expecting nothing in return, then you create opportunities for further witnessing. Not all will accept what you offer, but that is not your concern. The point is you were available to be used by God to be a witness to them, and what they do with your witness is between them and God.

These are simple habits we can apply every day in all kinds of situations. In doing so, we begin to see each day not just as another day, but as an opportunity to impact eternity with our witness for Christ. When you see the eternal potential of each day, you will have an eternal outlook on each day. Ecclesiastes 3:1-14 shows us that the cycles of life do have a purpose and a reason to them and we can be a part of that reason and purpose if we are willing to engage ourselves for eternity.