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Stewardship of Time
More Than Just Hours in the Day
There are many inequities in the world, but one thing we all have in common is the same amount of time each day. God has allotted twenty-four hours to each one of us. Stewardship calls us to view all time as a gift. We understand that each of us receives gifts in differing amounts - at least as far as talents and treasures go. However, we all have the same amount of time, at least in terms of minutes in a day, etc. The key to good stewardship is how each of us uses that time. There are many ways to be a good steward of God’s time - prayer, Scripture reading, Eucharistic Adoration, time with our family, helping those in need in our parish and in our community, sharing time with others. When we come to the realization that it is God’s time, not ours, then we are better able to be good stewards. In a busy society like ours, time is one of the most precious gifts we have. How we spend our time is perhaps the clearest indication of our progress in a life of Christian discipleship.
Each of us has been given enough time to accomplish God's purpose for us on this planet. The Scriptures exhort us to invest our time wisely, reminding us that God determines the length of our stay on earth. Time is more than the “hours in the day” and offering our gifts to the church. Time is putting God first in our lives and sharing our Faith with others. Stewardship helps us evaluate how we use our time. God gifts us with a certain amount of time. God requires us to exercise responsible stewardship with all our gifts, including the gift of time. Responsible stewardship involves humbly acknowledging God's gifts, cherishing and tending God's gifts, and returning a portion of these gifts with justice and love. How do we use our time to work, to play, to pray, to love? Each day God gifts us with a new supply. Each day we are given the privilege to return a portion of that new day back to God.
The central Christian mystery is found in the death and resurrection of Jesus and can be summed up by saying that when we take the gift of life, break it open and share it with others, life returns abundantly. Stewardship of time enables us to experience this reality to its fullest. How we use our time says much about what we value and where our priorities are. Time for God, family, for others, for ourselves: when all are balanced well, we feel our lives are in order. If one element of our use of time falls out of balance, life seems unmanageable and out of sorts. Are you being a good steward of the minutes, hours, days, months and years that God is giving you?
