Enough Time

One thing that marks life in the 21st century, at least in the city of Sydney, is a lack of time. We have more time-saving tools, faster transport and instant communication. Yet we seem busier than ever and more rushed for time. We go from place to place trying fit more into our already busy diaries.

The classic answer to this problem is that we need to manage our priorities better. And certainly this is a vital part of the solution. We need to be proactive about spending the time where it matters most. The Bible is clear that what matters most in life is our relationships – our relationship with God and with others (Matthew 22:34-40). Managing our priorities is a must.

But there is another vital perspective we need to grasp if we want to live life better. It is live life with the Bible’s view of time. In 2 Peter 3:8, it says that to God ‘a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day’. God is not limited like we are and he is not in a hurry when it comes to time. God’s purpose always prevails across the generations (Isa 40:6-8).

And God rules not only across time, God is also rules within time. In Psalm 127 we read:

1 Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.
2 In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to [a] those he loves.

Human success does not ultimately depend on how hard we work or how much time we have. At the end of the day it depends entirely on God’s blessing. God can grant success in a short amount of time or over a long period of time. It is his blessing that counts in whatever we are trying to achieve.

The great news is that God generously gives us enough time to do all that is necessary as well as to enjoy the fruit of that work on our day off. This is the basis of God’s command to Israel to not only rest every seventh day (Ex 20:8-11), but also every seventh year! (Lev 25:1-7, 20-22). God promised that he would provide such a bumper crop in the sixth year that they would be covered for a full three years. It was not time or effort that counted, but the promise of God’s blessing as they obeyed his command to keep the Sabbath. We can work all we like, but it is he who grants success to those who loves.

It is within this perspective of God’s sovereignty that we need to learn to be less frantic when it comes to time. God is not only sovereign over time, he generously gives us enough time for all that we need to do and to also enjoy his good gifts. He calls us to slow down enough to take stock of who is in control and what is most important. And God promises that when we set our priorities right, he will never leave us lacking anything (Mtt 6:33).

Pastor Owen Seto.