Hey friends, how are you today? I know I said it, but I’ll say it again… happy new year.  We are seven days into the new year.  On one hand, we are only seven days into the new year.  On the other hand, can you believe we are already seven days into the year? Seemingly, I blinked, and seven days have passed.   My body has been at war with a virus lately.  Usually when I sick, my world comes to an end.  I’m slowly getting out of the fog.  But where did the last seven days go? Where did the time go? 

Time, time, time… wait for me, time.  Wait while I get over this ‘flu.  Wait, time… wait for me.  My goals for 2026 are not yet fully set.  Everything isn’t in place.  Wait time… please wait.  

Except ‘time waits for no man’ does it?  ‘Time flies, we’ve been told.  Time lost cannot be regained, time and tide wait for no man are just a few proverbs about time.  

The Bible also tells us a few things about time too.  First, we are told that God is the Creator of time.   He determined the length of time in a day. At the start, He decided the duration of the first day. He did the same for the second day and so forth.  Time is controlled by our God.  

He established the length of our days, even before our conception.  In 2025, I lost to death, two childhood friends unexpectedly.   Both were relatively young (in their 50’s).   Time belongs to our God.  John MacArthur says in his Bible commentary, “evaluate time, in light of the frailty of life”.  

Last year, I wrote six blog posts.  I’m still surprised at this number.  I know I did not spend as much time as I wanted on this site.  But I thought I had written much more than six posts.  Yet here we are.  What did I do with the time I used to spend on the blog? Because that’s the thing, right? If I say ‘yes’ to one; I say ‘no’ to another.  I may not have intended for that to be the case, but ‘intent does not negate impact’.   

Time is limited.  As I get older, it certainly seems there isn’t enough of it.   At this time, I can’t even remember what I did in place of the time I used to write.  I certainly did not write. The truth is we grant time to the people and things we prioritize.  

I thought I had more time.  “I’ll do it tomorrow” is a phrase, I said often to myself.  I felt better about whatever it was, I chose to do instead, after those words.  Because to me, time was limitless.  But no… time kept marching on, even though I was unprepared.  Time waits for no man.

Time is short, we’ve heard.   Time is valuable. It became more so, as I got older.  It is more precious; especially in light of the family and friends I’ve lost. It does not matter how tightly I try to hang on to them, eventually time will run out.  For all of us.  The Bible tells us, life is like a vapor. Life is like a flower; it blooms in the morning but fades away as the day comes to an end.  Life is frail and there is a (deadline) date, unfortunately.  

In the meantime, we’ve been to be called to ‘work out our salvation’.  We’ve been called to obedience.  Our God does not give suggestions.  He never leaves room for negotiation. And there is such beauty in our obedience.  Joy, peace, rest are the sweet rewards. My obedience requires my time.  When I allow distractions, I waste time.  And in 2025, I admit, I allowed too many distractions.  

I allowed my feelings to dictate too many of my actions.  I woke up from my feelings and realized that time did not wait for me to get over my feelings.  Isn’t it surprising and disappointing too, how much is accomplished when we ‘feel’ like it?   Except feelings are so fickle that they become a weak foundation on which to build our ‘work’.   

Time marches on when I obey the Word of God.  Time continues to march on when I disobey too.  In Psalm 90, the psalmist says, “teach us to number our days…”. In Ephesians 5:16, we are told, “redeeming the days…”.  Time is limited, time is valuable.  It’s one of our most precious commodities.  Yet at the same time, it is one that is most wasted.  

In order to ‘gain a heart of wisdom’ my feelings cannot determine what I do.  The Bible tells me that my flesh and my spirit are at war.  Neither wants to do what they other wants.  This implies I have a choice to make.  Do I follow the Spirit? Or do I follow the flesh? 

Time is a gift from the Lord. If I use the time available to me, to follow the flesh, then I will reap its rewards. I will miss out on so many opportunities because my head is down.  I will miss chances to impact the lives of others for the glory of God because I don’t feel like it today. 

If I choose to follow the Spirit’s lead, then my intent and my impact will align.  The footprints I leave in the sand will cause others to see the love and the faithfulness of our God. I will complete successfully all I have been called to do. His divine power has given me all I need to perform His work. The time is available for me to become all He intended. Time will not run out, if I ‘walk circumspectly’.

I don’t know how much time the Lord has given me, but I want this year to be the best year.  I want this month to be the best month.  I want this week to be better than last week.  I choose today to be the best day.  

How about you? What are your plans for 2026? How do you intend to accomplish these plans?