For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. –Matthew 6:21

Several weeks ago I posted part one in the Matthew 6:21 series; a group of posts exploring the reasons and ways we form connections and become dedicated to certain causes. Part one was The Power of Knowing and looked at how an intimate acquaintance with people and missions affects how invested we are in them. This post will focus on how important the treasure of time is.

Time is one of our most valuable resources because it’s not replenishable. Once a minute is gone, we can’t get it back. As Job said,

Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? –Job 7:1

The Bible tells us to be good stewards. Time is definitely something that is important to manage well in order to be a good steward. (I’m pretty sure all of us are aware of areas where our time manage could improve!) God puts a high value on time.

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. Redeeming the time because the days are evil. –Ephesians 5:16

Redeem the time. Redeem means to rescue from loss. To buy it up. To not let it go to waste.

This week many of my friends are in or preparing for finals week at college. They are very aware of the value of time right now. College students across the country would pay money to get some extra time to prepare. Which leads to the main point of this post.

When you think about college students, how do you separate the serious scholars from the kids who are at school to party? How they spend their time, right? It’s a pretty safe bet that the kids who aren’t studying for their finals don’t place a very high value on their test scores. But guess what? The students spending hours pouring over text books and fighting exhaustion to polish their papers have a very strong interest in the grades they will get.

The same concept applies to the rest of life. You will be invested in the things you choose to dedicate time to. (Side Note: The time investment=dedication thing doesn’t seem to work as consistently with activities you are forced into.) As a very simple example, my mom likes jigsaw puzzles. She has a much stronger sense of achievement when she finishes a 1000 piece puzzle than when she completes a 300 piece puzzle. Why? She invested a lot more time in the bigger puzzle. To give another example, I’m an author. When I write a novel, I care much more about its success than I care about the success of a three page short story I wrote.

You can see how this applies to “serving the least of these.” When you care about orphans, you invest time into learning and serving them. The more time you spend, the more important it is to you.

Many times we view a lack of money as a huge barrier to helping orphans. But really, time is even more valuable than dollar bills. Even if you have an income, you must invest time to earn it. If you don’t have a job, that time is available for you to use in a different way. Just like putting effort into knowing orphans is an important aspect of serving them, consciously dedicating time to service is of great value.

God has given each and every one of us treasure. He’s watching to see what kind of stewards we will be. How will you manage your time? Where does your treasure say your heart is?