Time Management

Being a full-time seminarian alone, setting aside my involvement in ministry, has led me to conclude that many things vie for my time and attention.  Naturally, that doesn’t bode well for my inability to manage my time well and affinity for procrastination.  Thousands of pages of reading, prayerful reflection on course material, lengthy papers, and integrating my education with my spiritual life are all taxing tasks in and of themselves.

But the funny thing is, I didn’t realize all the above until now (more than halfway into my seminary education).

So what brought me to this epiphany?  As with any life lesson, you learn the most about yourself when you are overwhelmed and running on empty.  Granted that this is my second year at Gordon-Conwell (and what I’m told is the most grueling year here), I probably should have realized this last semester.  But it wasn’t until these past couple weeks, when I was faced with more than just demands from school- family praises & crises, future life goals, personal relationships, and my own spiritual development – that I was humbled right where I stood.

Regardless of what you’re doing or what field you specialize in, “busy-ness” and work are a part of life.  One’s ideal lifestyle should not revolve around reducing the amount of commitments made, but refocusing these commitments to serve a greater purpose.  No one can completely rid themselves of stress or responsibilities, and no one should want to.  Even in my future vision for retirement, I hope that my daily life isn’t defined by the concerns of which golf course to play on that day or what new hobby I want to take on.  Instead, my life then becomes a matter of managing my time in a productive manner, a manner in which God has called me to live.

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Gospel Connection:  My quiet time reflections in the past couple days have led me to the Creation narrative.  God spoke the world in motion, and everything He created was good.  On top of all that, the fitting way He chose to bring closure to His work was to rest of the seventh day.

Often times we go through life jumping from one obligation to the next.  At least in the Western tradition, after high school comes college, then grad school for some and/or a stable job after that.  In the picture of Creation, these aren’t inherently bad things.  As human beings created in the image of God, we are mandated to have dominion over the created world to work and keep it.  But if we move from one life-stage to the next in a manner where we’re sucking up all the resources we can from our immediate contexts, we’re not honoring what we’ve been made responsible for, but just taking advantage of it.

Academic degrees, meaningful careers, and personal relationships are all outlets in which we are called to serve.  But when we tackle them with this “consumer mindset” and suck them dry until we feel satisfied, we engage in an idolatrous, one-way interaction that only brings to surface the pattern of our sin.  How are we utilizing our studying so that our peers recognize a fundamental difference in the way we achieve our diplomas?  How are we fulfilling our careers so that our co-workers sense a motivation that stems beyond a strive for money/status?  And how are we engaging in relationships that seeks the good of the Other, so as to mirror Christ’s pursuit of his children?

The Sabbath is a great way to keep ourselves in check.  Not only does it allow for us to take a break from the daily grind that we’re faced with, but it helps us reassess priorities and reflect on God’s presence in our lives.  The purpose of Creation extends well beyond the need for a place to live for human beings, but it establishes a dwelling place for God in our lives.  Once in a while, we need to take the time to remember that truth.  As Christians, Jesus serves as the reminder that our purpose in life is not rooted in the things we plan.  Consequently, the biggest worry we have on our plates right now doesn’t seem so big anymore, because we can rest assured in the hope that Someone else has overcome it for us.

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I know that I’ve been sporadic in my posts and some of my followers have expressed a desire for me to be more consistent with it.  So as a practical means to implement this epiphany in my own life, I hereby promise to update this blog once a week.  Regardless of how busy I can get or how lazy I can be, I know that’s there’s always time to share my story with those who are willing and eager to hear it.  But even more than for your benefit, I pray that this will be a tangible way for me to take my Sabbath in Christ.  I praise God that I have something to write about worth reading, and I credit the Holy Spirit entirely for enlightening me to do so.

Readers, feel free to take any means to keep me accountable to this promise!  God bless.