Be intentional about how you spend your time

As a people, we have developed an anxiety fuelling prioritisation of time but not in the best way. Think about how you feel when you read the words “Time is money”. Did you sense the rush and/or pressure linked to those words? We are conditioned to believe that “if you are not spending your time making money then you are wasting your time.” Life is complex and money is only one aspect of what makes up a good life. Some of us have more time than money but we tend to underestimate the value of our time. Unlike money, in terms of fluctuations in currency rates, the value of time does not depreciate. Time is always valuable. Being intentional about how you spend it is of great importance.

A short story about the value of time

There was a young woman who recently lost her mother to pancreatic cancer. She got in touch with her estranged father as her mother’s health deteriorated in hopes that he would give her support and be present to help her through this tough season in her life. He sent her some money to assist with some of the things she needed to get to help take care of her mom.

After her mother passed away, she told her father, and he made an effort to be present. On this day she saw what a difference his presence made. Sadly, that visit was about as much effort as he was willing to make. A few weeks passed as she transitioned and tried to move on with life. She attempted reaching out to him again and his response was to send her some money.

A few days afterwards, she told him that she would rather struggle financially and give him back his $1000 in exchange for 1000 minutes of his time. The father was hurt by these words but never responded to her and so the potential of a relationship growing between them dwindled. Relationships are one of the most valuable aspects of our lives. They too require time and work.

The greatest labourer

Hands down, God is the greatest Labourer of all time. No one outworks Him. He is also the best example of how to set priorities correctly. He showed us how this ought to be done in a way we could understand by sending His Son, Jesus, to live among us.

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

Luke 6:12

Jesus worked, he made time to nurture His relationship with His Father, to take care of; to spend time and grow his relationships with his family and friends, and he served his community. He was intentional about how he spent his time.

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Luke 5:16

Set your priorities right

It’s ok to want the promotion and work towards it. There are sacrifices that you would have to make to spend time on attaining that goal and for a time, that could be the top priority. Good work and decent-great pay helps us to be adequate providers. Financial freedom does offer us better living standards and we are able to be blessings to others when we can “afford” to, through financial contributions.

It is good for man to toil and earn his living by the sweat of his brow. Jesus did it. However, spending our time laser focused on money alone robs us of enjoying the fullness of the life God has granted us. In a 24-hour day, how much time do you dedicate to the main Source of all your resources? How much time do you spend on taking care of yourself holistically? How much time do you spend on being present, supporting and serving your family, friends and community?

These are treasures worth much more than money (on its own). They are usually the things that remain when financial circumstances change for the worse.

Make time to rest

‘Overwhelm’ has become a norm and it builds up over time through all the mindless living we allow ourselves to endure. We need to go back to the basics of savouring the moment that is life [James 4:14].

Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

James 4:14

The only way to do this is through rest. Rest requires time and it is not only for getting in your 6-8 hours of sleep. Having a difficult association with rest becomes easy when deadlines, endless requirements to develop yourself with online courses and masterclasses, so that you become a super intellectual human, take over. It is exactly in these happenings that we miss the countless opportunities to see, feel and acknowledge what we are grateful for.

Rest can take a minute or an hour. You can schedule it in as you please. It is like the in between sabbaths throughout the day that help us remain present. Normalise rest for the sake of your sanity. Rest is your responsibility. Be deliberate in sitting still and just be. It may feel uncomfortable at first but like every habit, it takes commitment make it a daily practice.

Our lives can be filled with all these activities, and we can fully enjoy them. We are allowed to fully enjoy them. Read the book of Ecclesiastes is you are doubtful. Your whole life is a gift from God and all that you have that is good is from God.

Make time to enjoy His goodness in your life.

Written by Dineo Phadimenyane.

For more inspiration read our daily devotional, The Word for Today.