“Time is the scarcest resource. Unless it is managed,
nothing else can be managed.” Says R.Alec Mackenzie
in his book Managing Time at the
Top. Each man is allotted with a finite number
of days on earth. Bible clearly tells about brevity of life
and its sudden end. “And as it is
appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.”
Hebrews 9:27.
Time management is all about controlling the use of your
most valuable resource called Time. Time management is a
set of tools, which allow you to eliminate wastage of time
and to do things in most effective, efficient and effortless
way.
Time is the sequential occurrence of events. Time can be
also defined as the period between two events. We are bound
by time and space only on earth. The length of time we live
on earth is a journey from earth to eternity. Our privileges
are limited by time. But our eternity depends on how we
use best of our time for the glory of God. In other word,
time must be managed to arrive at our goal or destination.
Kairotic Time
There are two important Greek words used in bible to refer
to time. One is chronos and the other is kairos. Chronos
refer to time in terms of a clock or calendar or chronological
time. But kairos is referred to time in terms opportunity.
Paul does not use the Greek word chronos, but kairos in
Ephesians 5:15-16 “ See than that you walk circumspectly,
not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the
days are evil.” Paul is exhorting here to grab the
time opportunity. Kairos is not mere moment or duration
but an opportune time. Jesus himself used the kairos to
mean ‘opportune and ripe’ in John7: 6. Dr. Won
Sul Lee, former President of Han Nam University, Korea,
describes kairos as a decisive transition, a metamorphosis,
in which all forces for change, after gathering momentum,
burst into action suddenly. Our life on earth is nothing
but a God-given opportunity.
Setting Priorities
Setting priorities is one of the most important aspects
of effective time management. Setting priority involves
striking a balance between urgent and important events in
life.
Vilfredo Pareto, a nineteenth century Italian economist’s
80/20 rule explains the importance of setting priorities
for effective result. Pareto discovered that 80% of the
wealth of Italy was owned by 20% of the people. Pareto Principle
says that 80% of your success will come from 20% of what
you do. In other words, this means, concentration on the
most important tasks (20%) than other less important ones.
Applying the Pareto principle can indicate where the effort
for change is best concentrated.
The Time Management Matrix will help understand the Pareto
principle. All the tasks in our lives can be divided into
four categories or quadrants. They are Urgent &
Important, Not Urgent but Important,
Urgent but not Important and Not
Urgent Not Important.
Quadrant I: Urgent and Important
The quadrant-I activities require immediate attention. While
making the priority list these activities should be given
top priority. But quadrant-I activities wear out many, as
these activities tend to dominate you. Activities like Crises
management, deadline driven projects, problem solving falls
in this category. Quadrant-I activities can be controlled
to a great extent if one focuses on the quadrant-II activities.
Quadrant II: Not Urgent but Important
Quadrant-II plays a vital role in effective time management.
Effective people do not focuses on the urgent but on the
important. Activities like prevention, planning, visioning,
relationship building etc. comes under quadrant-II. Important
matters require proactivity and contribute to mission, goal
setting and planning. What is of importance of today will
become an urgent matter tomorrow. When you focus on future
activities obviously your problems will shrink to a great
extent and make chances of success brighter. 80% of the
result will flow from 20% of activities.
Quadrant III: Urgent but Not
Important
Quadrant-III activities are of short-term focus. One should
tackle this category activity if time is available, otherwise
they can be delegated to someone else.
Quadrant IV: Not Urgent and Not
Important
Quadrant-IV activities can be postponed, ignored, delegated
or abandoned. It is found that, most of the people waste
their time, money and energy in this category activity.
The correlation of Time to Great Commission
It is interesting to note Jesus’ opening remark as
he launched his ministry on earth “...the kingdom
of God is at hand.” (Mathew 4:17). The meaning of
the phrase suggests the beginning of a time of God’s
reign on earth. Towards the end of His ministry he talks
about signs of time (Mathew 24) and finally reveals in Revelation
22:20 that He is coming quickly which reinforces the mandate
to carry out Great Commission with a great sense of urgency.
His coming is dependent on how fast we carry out the Great
Commission “Even so, come Lord Jesus”(Revelation
22:20). Unless you use the God given opportunity (time)
for Great Commission His coming is delayed. You need to
see how best you can invest your time for Great Commission.
Nothing on earth is more urgent and important than winning
lost souls. Manage your time keeping the Great Commission
in focus.
Tips for Effective Time Management
Some tips for time management are listed below. A conscious
attempt to do these will help you manage your time effectively.
