Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest (Memorial)

There is an appointed time for everything. 

Our time on earth is a gift. It’s a limited resource, and it’s important that we use it well. And yet God has “put the timeless into [our] hearts” (Ecclesiastes 3:11), giving us a longing for eternity. It’s as if we are supposed to live in two different worlds at the same time. The way we spend our time in this life matters, but we are made for eternity, unbound by the constraints of time. So, do we busy ourselves only with trying to accomplish all our daily tasks in their “appointed time” (3:1)? Or do we also place a priority on spiritual pursuits?

Qoheleth, the author of Ecclesiastes, wrote that there is a “time” for all things; God gives us tasks to “be busied about” (3:1, 10). But even though God put the timeless into our hearts, we don’t really discover “from beginning to end, the work which God has done” (3:11). In other words, even though we are meant for eternity, we don’t fully understand how God uses the tasks he places before us to prepare us for eternity. We are somehow in the dark about the meaning of it all. And so Qoheleth becomes despondent.

But we have an advantage that Qoheleth didn’t have. We can look to the example of Jesus, eternal God who became man. He lived both in time and in eternity. He knows from experience what it’s like to exist in this world, what it’s like to have to make choices about how to use limited time. Sleep or pray? Stay put in the midst of a fruitful ministry or move on (Mark 1:37-38)? Interrupt an urgent errand in order to heal an insistent sufferer (Mark 5:21-43)? Surely Jesus understands our challenges and is eager to lead us as we choose how to use our time to accomplish God’s desires. He understood both God’s eternal purposes and the needs in front of him, and he can help us do the same.

It matters how we spend our time here on earth because the choices we make can help carry out God’s plan in the world. But the ways we spend our time can also increase our longing for heaven and make us more ready to spend eternity with God. May we learn the wisdom of living with our feet on earth and our hearts in heaven!

“Eternal loving God, help me to use the time you’ve given me with an eye toward eternity.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
Psalm 144:1-4
Luke 9:18-22