What People Say about Time after the Fact?

“As a pastor, I’ve stood by many deathbeds. I’ve listened as people have looked back over their lives and whispered their final regrets. Never once have I heard someone say, “I only wish I had worked more overtime” or “If only I had become the CEO.” But I have heard many people lament, “I wish I had spent more time with my children” or “I wish I had invested more into the work of the Lord.” It is entirely possible to diligently spend your time on fleeting goals. Some things just don’t matter when you approach the bridge between time and eternity. If you don’t clearly identify what true success is, you will come to the end of your life and realize that you lived for the wrong goals. At that point, you will wish you had invested more into eternity.” -Paul Chappell, Stewarding Life

 

What is a Successful Use of Time?

“Time—however many years of it we have—is our opportunity to achieve success in life. But if we don’t clearly identify what success looks like, we may come to the end of our lives only to realize that we lived for the wrong goals. What is your definition of success? From a secular perspective, success may be making wise financial investments, climbing to the top of the ladder in a career field, or accumulating prestigious possessions. None of this is necessarily wrong, but neither does it quantify true success. After all, good financial returns, high positions in a career, and material possessions won’t last forever. If these become the goals of your life, when your time is gone—so is your success. When God tells us to steward our time with wisdom—to redeem the time—He spells out what He means—“understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Success is knowing and doing the will of God. It is investing our time in that which will last for eternity.” -Paul Chappell, Stewarding Life

God’s Pilot Program: Time

“Imagine your bank calls to ask you to help them pilot a new program. The plan is both lavish and simple: Each morning, the bank will credit your account with $86,000, which you will be free to spend or invest as you please. But every night, your account will close with a balance of zero. It will carry no balance from day to day, meaning that you must spend or invest the deposit each day or it will be wasted. I think if most of us had such an opportunity, we would manage to find good use for the $86,000 every day! The truth is, you do have a bank that credits your account each morning. Its name is Time, and it generously gives you 86,000 seconds daily. But like the bank we described above, every morning the non-refundable deposit is cancelled by evening. Whatever you don’t spend or invest is wasted. Failure to use the day’s deposit results in irreplaceable loss.” -Paul Chappell, Stewarding Life