God Gives Us Each Two Dozen Hours

"Not Enough Time" is the great pandemic of our era. We live in such hurry that we swear at computers for taking over two seconds to download files. We build more and more gadgets to make life run faster--only to find that exploring the resulting new possibilities more than offsets the time saved.

Actually, God gives us time to accomplish everything He wants us to do--but as long as we insist on adding things we want to do and things everyone else wants us to do, we'll be struggling under heavy burdens instead of whistling under the light one Christ offers. Those rare individuals who get plenty done and yet never seem rushed aren't all Christians, but they all operate on two life principles: a strong and specific sense of purpose; and a willingness to forgo anything, no matter how attractive, that fails to contribute to that purpose. For every believer, the priority of each moment must be to find and fill the niche God has specified, for that believer at that moment, to advance the ultimate purpose: God's glory,

Anything less is a waste of time.

God gives us each two dozen hours
For every day we live,
Enough for all we need to do,
When them to Him we give.
He does not wish that we should waste
Life's greatest treasure, time,
In vain pursuit of false success,
In thoughts of "me" and "mine."

God gives us each two dozen hours
To fill each earthly day,
Yet most of us crave countless more,
To spend on work and play.
We ask too much, because we think
Too much of our desires,
And rarely stop to ask of Him
What actions He requires.

God gives us each two dozen hours
(And He alone is wise)--
The right amount for every day,
For all the needs that rise.
He has great things for us to do--
But we ignore His plans,
Though we could free ourselves from rush
By heeding His commands.

God gave to you two dozen hours
For you to use today:
Will you spend them in serving Him,
Or squander them away?
Oh, follow not your own desires,
To build on crumbling sand,
But let God lead you every hour,
And what you raise will stand!