Does time management matter to God?

Part 1 of a 2 part “series”: What does the Bible say about my time, and how it should be spent?

Punctuality, time management, home management, chore management, family management. Work, home, sport and music practices, ministries, date nights with the spouse, get togethers with family and friends. We all have a lot going on! WHATEVER you want to call it, managing how we spend our time is something important to us all. How do some large families manage to arrive 20 minutes early to each appointment, while others who are single struggle to show up any sooner than 10 minutes late every time? And what does any of this have to do with Christianity? No, it doesn’t mean you are a bad Christian if you are consistently late. No, it doesn’t mean you have it all together if you are early everywhere you go. I simply wanted this week to dig into God’s word and figure out: Is it important to God if I am punctual? Does He even care about time, and how long it takes me to do things? Does the way we manage our time even matter to Him? The best way to know this for sure is to go to the Bible. Here is what I found:

The creation of time

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

Genesis 1:14, 19

You see, from the very beginning of creation, as illustrated in the book of Genesis, God set us up with a system by which to tell time. He gave us the sun, moon, stars, seasons, etc. It is by these things that we know one day from the next. God, himself, is the creator and giver of time. We should thank him everyday for the time he has given us. We are never promised more of it! Enjoy and use wisely every moment you have.

The appointment of time

And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do this thing in the land.

Exodus 9:5

So Amasa went to assemble [the men of] Judah: but he tarried longer than the set time which he had appointed him.

2 Samuel 20:5

To every [thing there is] a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

Ecclesiastes 3:1

We see in these three passages of scripture that there is a specific time for certain things to happen. Some of these times the Lord appoints, and some of these specific times are things we appoint ourselves. The lesson here is that, yes, appointments matter. When you make an appointment, keep the appointment. When you promise to be there at a certain time, be there. If you study the first two of these scriptures contextually, you will see that when the appointed times are missed, the outcome is not good.

The management of time

Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man’s heart discerneth both time and judgment.

Ecclesiastes 8:5

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesians 5:15-16

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

Colossians 4:5

So teach [us] to number our days, that we may apply [our] hearts unto wisdom.

Psalm 90:12

It is easy to see from these verses, that, yes, managing your time is important. Numbering your days (and hours) and discerning time, while using it appropriately, requires wisdom. So how do we get this wisdom? It only comes from the Word of God. The Bible is literally God’s instruction manual for life! In it you will find guidelines for what to do, what not to do, and even how long to spend and when to do certain things!

Keep an eye out for part 2 of this series… How do I manage my time better? We will look at a few verses to help us prioritize, and I will also share a few practical tips I have found to be helpful when managing time in our family of 7!