Waste It Wisely

What if a rich benefactor decided to give you $86,400 each day? Sounds great, doesn’t it?

But there is a catch. You are not allowed to save any of it. You have to spend it all, and what is not spent must be returned. However, the next day, the wealthy man graciously provides you with another $86,400. However, he may decide to stop the payments at any time.

Wouldn’t this be wonderful? $86,400 per day! What would you do with such a sum? Would you give some to the poor? Would you pay off all your bills and debts? Would you build a new house or give things to your family and friends? Would you quit your job and tour the world?

You might think that no one on earth would ever give so much to anyone, yet there is someone extremely rich who is giving away something incredibly valuable. Have you ever heard the expression “time is money”? It means that the time you have in a day is worth something. But how much?

Our Creator has not given us $86,400 a day, but 86,400 seconds (24 hours represent 86,400 seconds). As with the gift of money, you cannot save time for a later use; you have to spend it. Nonetheless, the next day, God graciously provides another set of 24 hours. However, at any moment, your time in this life can run out.

Is how we spend our 24 hours our prerogative or God’s? Shouldn’t we please our Master and be involved in His business, helping to publish the gospel to all nations and preparing ourselves to reign in His Kingdom?

How do we spend God’s time?

We belong to God

If we have been sealed with God’s Spirit, we no longer belong to ourselves (1 Corinthians 6:19). In fact, Christians are God’s bond servants (1 Corinthians 7:22-23).

God’s servants should constantly work at preparing their hearts “to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it” (Ezra 7:10). Engaged in their Father’s business, they constantly seek to trust in their Master and to do His will.

It is wise advice to simplify our lives so we can dedicate more time to serving God and to doing His good works. Consider God’s soldiers: “You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier” (2 Timothy 2:3-4).

Understand what God’s will is

The next step is to understand how to spend that time. In other words, we must know what God expects us to do with the time we have.

To understand the will of God, we must build a relationship with the Creator. This is done through daily prayer, Bible reading and study, meditation and regular fasting.

For instance, Christians need to be living sacrifices, doing the good works they are capable of doing, which may include such things as caring for the afflicted and the sick or giving food, clothes, money and time to the poor, orphans and needy. Christians must also take care of themselves by sleeping and eating for good health and following basic safety rules so they can be useful to God for a long time.

In Ephesians 5:15-17 Paul wrote: “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

We do not have much time left

Our lives are short. We must become wise in the way we spend the time we have. Moses once said: “So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12). Christians must also do God’s work with passion (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

We have so much to do and a short time here on this earth. How do we spend our 86,400 seconds each day?

Peter wrote, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness …?” (2 Peter 3:10-11).

Let’s make sure to use the time we have to be “diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless” when the Master returns (2 Peter 3:14).

Hervé Irion is a member of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association, in Houston, Texas.