“Look carefully then how you walk, not
as unwise but as wise, making the best
use of the time, because the days are
evil.” Ephesians 5:15-16 (ESV) our fingertips. But with all of this
technology comes the belief that we
can do more, do it faster and that we
should.
The subject of time is something
I’ve wrestled with my entire life. I’ve
always seemed to think I can get more
done in a day than I can, leaving me
with the feeling that I’ve never done
enough. I’ve jokingly called myself
a recovering procrastinator, and the
modern pull of digital distractions has
made it easier than ever to put off the
things that matter. Not to mention,
my struggle with perfectionism has
meant it’s never quite the right time to
get started anyway. Even worse, technology can be
a d i s t r a c t i o n . Te x t m e s s a g e s ,
notifications, emails, social media,
games and digital ads of whatever you
looked at last week that you can buy
with the click of a button. Unless we
choose wisely, it will steal time that
would be more meaningfully spent on
the purposes God uniquely created us
to accomplish.
So when I felt led in my spirit to write
a book about time, literally called
It’s About Time: The art of choosing
the meaningful over the urgent, I was
intrigued. To accept the challenge
was to write the book for readers that
I needed.
None of us today are exempt from the
tyranny of time. As pastor and leader,
I know you can relate to the challenge
of constantly making choices about
your time – and maybe even doubting
sometimes whether the choices you
are making are the ones God most
wants you to make.
The truth is, we’re technology rich
and time poor. With all the advances
over the last several decades, we’ve
saved an enormous amount of time.
Housework is faster. Communication
is almost instant. Information is at
Unbeknownst to most of us, there’s
an army of programmers engaged in
a battle for our time. The longer they
hold our attention, the more they can
charge advertisers for the privilege of
targeting us. So while you might beat
yourself up because you feel addicted
to your phone, the truth is, the digital
world is designed to win more and
more of your time.
Scripture addresses this in Ephesians
5:15-16: “Look carefully then how you
walk, not as unwise but as wise, making
the best use of the time, because the
days are evil.”
Digital distractions aren’t the only
problem. Many of us are wired in
ways that make us more vulnerable
to misusing our time. I call them
“Core Vulnerabilities.” Do any of these
describe your habits?
• Optimism (you usually underestimate
how much time you need to do things).
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