The completion of 2015, caused me to reflect on how I stewarded my time last year. It also makes me think about how I can live purposefully in 2016 with the Lord’s help. Most of us don’t want to be wasteful with our time because we know it is a powerful and precious commodity, which gets spent every day whether we like it or not.
Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; Genesis 1:14
The Lord created everything including time and the seasons. Therefore, He is not bound by time. Since He is from eternity to eternity, His viewpoint on time is different than ours. God’s time is unlimited, but our time on this earth is limited. The scripture tells us:
For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. James 4:14b
As we get older, we realize more and more how fleeting our lives are. Just as a vapor vanishes before our eyes, we are incapable of holding on to our years; they appear on the timeline of life for a moment. The older we get, we become more aware of the value of time and stewarding it better.
Our finite time and God’s unlimited time causes us to struggle with its limitations on us. As people, we have a tendency to be goal oriented and like to set timelines to accomplish goals. Those who are single, wonder if they can be married before they get too old. Women who are married, want to have children before they are 40 years old. Young adults have a timeline for completing their education in order to feel successful and accomplished.
Conversely, we find that God is very process oriented. He is more concerned about our development rather than our accomplishment. He is not in a hurry to change our circumstances nor follow our timeline. This is where the conflict lies between our finite time and an infinite God!
But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 2Peter 3:8
God stands outside of time, and he considers one day as a thousand years and thousand years as one day. Some scholars try to make a correlation between one day and one thousand years in the light of a prophetic timetable. There is probably some correlation. However, the above scripture tells me that time is immaterial to God.
God’s unlimited amount of time can be analogous to a billionaire with almost unlimited amount of money. If you asked a billionaire how much they are willing to spend on their dinner, most likely, the price is not a factor in their decision making. They just care about what/where they want to eat. Money is no object because in their case it is limitless.
In God’s economy, time is limitless, so the Lord uses time as He sees fit. He has eternity in His hands, and He has plenty of time to accomplish what He desires. Time is not a limitation to Him.
As finite people how do we negotiate time with an infinite God? This is the subject of the next devotional.
