Be Wise with Your Time

Colossians 4:5

Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.

Time is a gift of God, and as His steward, I am to use time wisely so that I don't lose any minute of my time on earth. We must understand that every minute we lose is one minute that will keep us from doing what God originally intended for us to do. Now, everybody has wasted some time, but that is still no excuse because God commands us to walk in wisdom so that we can redeem the time.

What does it mean to redeem the time? It means to make the most of your time. It means to give an account of your time. It means don't waste time, and never let any moment slip away. It means to make the most of every opportunity that you have. It means to be intentional with your time. God wants us to make sure our time is spent in such a way that every minute he has given to us is used on purpose.

Why must we redeem the time? First of all, because we don't know how much time we have to live. To assume that we will live seventy years or longer is very arrogant and foolish. We don't know when our last day will be, so we must make sure to live every day as if it were the last day.

Secondly, we must redeem the time because it is a gift of God, and He will hold us accountable for how we use the time that He has given to us. I would hate to think that God gives me time to live on this earth to fulfill His purpose and waste that time on my own whims and desires. Let me share a couple of things you can do to make the most of your time.

First, be wise with your time. Do not be flippant with your time. Being careless with time will cause us to miss the greatest opportunities God gives to us. We never know which opportunity will be the one opportunity that God chooses to use us greatly; therefore, you must make sure that we are not careless about each minute that we have. When you realize the importance of every minute and not wasting them is when you will fill your time with things that will truly count in eternity.

Second, organize your time. Nobody has redeemed time that has not lived an organized and scheduled life. I find that too many people don't know what they are going to do next, and they waste time trying to figure out what to do. At the beginning of every day, you should set a schedule for that day of what you're going to do. Likewise, you should organize your life and know that on certain days you will accomplish specific tasks. For instance, every Monday I study for my Wednesday night Bible study and my Sunday school lesson. On Tuesday, I put my sermons together for the following Sunday. These are scheduled times that I don't let anything interfere with. Likewise, every morning I get up at the same time so that I can study God’s Word and pray. You will never use your life wisely if you don't learn to schedule your days and weeks. Every minute must be used on purpose, but that will not happen if you don't schedule your time. Organizing your time is as easy as scheduling your time.

Always remember that you will give an account to God for the time that He has given to you. If you redeem the time you have and use it to its fullest, God will be pleased with the way you've used your time on this earth. Make God's investment in the time that He is given to you a wise investment by using every minute of life to serve Him.