John Stanko

TOPIC: Time and Faith

"But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day" - 2 Peter 3:8.

If a day is like a 1,000 years, as this verse states, then an hour is like 46 years and a minute like 9 months! Therefore, if the Lord promises to be with you in" just a minute," you know His sense of time isn't the same as yours! Yet the opposite is also true: Nine months can fly by and seem like a minute. That means something you have been putting off because you think it will take a long time to complete can actually be done more quickly when you have faith for time and for things to go smoothly. What have you been putting off because you don't think you have time to do it, or do it well? Where do you need to trust the Lord for time and begin to do something that's in your heart? 

Lord, You are the Lord of time, which does not constrain You like it does me. Just like I do for money or jobs, I can trust You for time and see You do the miraculous! There are many things I have put off because of lack of time, but no more. I will learn to have faith for time and watch You work Your miracles!

TOPIC: Time and Boredom

" . . . and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man" - Proverbs 6:11.

When you waste your time, you lose opportunities to produce things that could enrich your life or the lives of others. And wasting time can become a bad habit so that eventually your life becomes boring and structured, lacking adventure. When that happens, you have shrunk your world down to its most manageable components, fearing anything out of the ordinary, yet desperately craving what you are missing. Is your life lacking in energy and excitement? Can you predict pretty much today what will happen tomorrow? Is this how you want to live for your remaing years?

Lord, I feel like my life could be so much more than it is, and time is at the center of it. I dream of what I may do in 10 years, but I am stuck in a rut today, and I don't see any changes for tomorrow. Help me to break out of this time poverty that I have created and allowed to take over my life.

TOPIC: Time and Faith

"A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—" - Proverbs 6:10.

There is always a temptation to have a few minutes free and do nothing with them, for you are thinking, "I have 20 minutes, but I don't want to start anything. What can I do in 20 minutes?"  If you are going to redeem and use your time, you need to stop thinking like this. If you have a plan and some goals, then in 20 minutes you can:  read, write, do some emails, take a power nap, make a phone call, listen to a 20-minute sermon, take a walk, call your spouse and chat, or write a journal entry. Just because you don't have a lot of time doesn't mean you don't have any. Are you effectively using the small blocks of time that are available to you? What more can you do with them that is meaningful?

Lord, I want to learn how to do more with the few minutes I have at any given point in the day. Help me not waste so many shorter breaks in my daily routine. Give me new vision for the big thing I can do a little at a time with Your help.

TOPIC: Time and Sleep

"How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?" - Proverbs 6:9.

The issue of how much sleep you need has been debated and studied by many for years. There is only one way for you to know, and that is to experiment and pay attention to how you feel after various amounts. One thing is probably true, however, and that is you can function well with a bit less sleep than you get right now. What could you do with an hour less sleep that you invested in your purpose and goals? Could you cut out some other activity and go to bed earlier to get that extra hour? One less hour a day is 30 hours every month and 360 hours a year, which is the equivalent of 15 full days! What would it mean to have 15 extra days every year?

Lord, I want You to extend my days, and one way You can do that is for me to get a little less sleep. I am counting on Your energy to help me, along with being activated and motivated by doing something I love in place of that sleep time. Help me figure out the best way for me to function in purpose and creativity and still be rested.

TOPIC: Time and Faithfulness

"Like a broken tooth or a lame foot is reliance on the unfaithful in a time of trouble" - Proverbs 25:19.

Have you ever had an experience with someone who made a commitment to do something, but then backed out because they didn't manage their time well, leaving you in the lurch? Today's verse likens that person to a broken tooth—painful and annoying! You don't want to be that kind of person, so when you make a commitment, make it a priority and keep your word to be punctual and follow through with excellence. Would others say you are faithful where time is concerned and can be counted on? Do you need to make amends for any commitments you made that you could not or did not keep? How can you prevent that from ever happening again?

Lord, I don't want to be a pain to others, so help me be a faithful person whom others can count on to be on time and on task. I want to be realistic where time is concerned, but I also want to have faith to do more than I thought possible without over-committing. Also, give me courage to admit when I fail so I can ask forgiveness and make amends.

TOPIC: Time and Wisdom

"By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place . . . ." - Proverbs 3:19.

If you want to exercise effective time management, you must employ wisdom, which is defined as choosing right actions in the midst of multiple and often conflicting options that will achieve the best results. The God who created the earth through wisdom is available to willingly impart the wisdom you need, but you must ask and then believe that He's giving it to you. Then you will be able to 'build' your own world by investing your time in important activities that will yield the greatest long-term returns. Are you asking for wisdom where time is concerned? Are you leaving some things undone in order to embrace the most important things? Are you asking for wisdom and then acting on the Lord's response?

Lord, I need wisdom for how to use my time, for there are so many things I can do. Your wisdom will direct me to what I should do. Help me build my world not only through hard work but through the wise use of the 24 hours I have every day.

TOPIC: Time and Wisdom

"For through wisdom your days will be many,
    and years will be added to your life" - Proverbs 9:11.

When you apply wisdom, it affects the time you have.  Your days are full of meaningful things and your days will be many and complete. Today's verse states that wisdom will also prolong your life! That must mean you devote the hours of your life to doing the correct things and doing them well, free of the stress that comes from idleness or the nagging doubt that you are wasting your time and your life. Do you feel that you are using wisdom where the time of your life is concerned?  Are there any regrets that you need to address now while you still can, things you need to do that you aren't? Are your days busy and stress free, or frenetic and stressful?

Lord, I want the time of my life to be all that it can be. That means I need wisdom of how to invest that time in the midst of so many conflicting options. Your word says to ask for wisdom when I need it, so I am asking today, trusting that you will give me the insight I need to maximize the time of my life.

TOPIC: Time and Priorities

"Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly:
'We had to speak the word of God to you first.
Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves
worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles'" - Acts 13:46.

The key to good time management is not squeezing a few more events into a limited amount of time, although often you can do more with the time you have. The real key to time management is setting priorities, doing what matters first and allowing things of lesser importance to wait. In today's verse, you see that Paul knew what he needed to do first and where to go after that task was completed. Do you set priorities on a daily basis, or do you simply give yourself to what seems most urgent or 'screams' the loudest for your attention? Have you even given thought to your priorities, or does everything share equal value, thus paralyzing you when you must decide what to do first?

Lord, I need help recognizing, setting and keeping my priorities. At times I am paralyzed for fear that I will set the wrong priorities or afraid I don't have enough time for the really important things, thus doing things of lesser importance while the weightier matters languish.  Help, Lord!

TOPIC: Time and Results

"It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known,  so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation" - Romans 15:20.

Paul had values and set goals that determined where and how he would invest his time. In this verse, he indicated he would only minister and work in new venues where no one had already built a church. That kind of clarity will helped him make daily decisions that produced focused results, and it will do the same for you. Do you have that kind of focus? Have you identified your personal values and then set goals to guide your use of time based on those values? What more can you do to obtain even more focused and productive results?

Lord, Paul was a great man who achieved much in a few decades. I want those same kind of results, which means I need his same kind of focus. Help me to know where and how I work best, and then help me do what's necessary to stay focused on those particular areas of my life.

Today I start a new monthly emphasis, returning to the topic of time management, which we also covered last March. We will look at the topic of time for the entire month of August.

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TOPIC: Time and Faith

"You yourselves know that these hands of mine
have supplied my own needs and the needs of
my companions. In everything I did, I showed
you that by this kind of hard work we must help
the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus
himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” - Acts 20:34-35.

Paul had a full-time job and a full-time ministry, so in a sense you can say he worked overtime! Yet both jobs were a labor of love. Because they were purpose-driven he had faith for time and was able to do more than most men because God was helping him. It's also interesting that Paul used his time management as a sources of generosity, paying his own way and that of his team so that others would not be offended by having to support his needs. Are you having faith for time? Are you doing more than you or others thought possible because of your faith? Do you use time as a means of generosity, giving it away to help others?

Lord, I marvel at how much Paul could do, and I want that same dynamic in my life. Help me to do more in the time I have than I could do without Your help, and help me to bless others as I generously bestow my time on things that matter to them and cause them to thank You for my help.