THE ONE RESOURCE YOU CAN'T REPLACE

You cannot manage time; you can only manage yourself

I was looking at a faded photograph of two of my sons proudly holding their first catch. Their smiles stretched from ear to ear as they held up a pair of fish that seemed enormous at the time. Besides the fish, they were hooked from that day forward. Today, they are grown men who still love fishing, but their fish are much bigger now. Their fishing techniques, knowledge, and skills have long since surpassed mine.

As I studied that old photograph, I found myself asking a familiar question: Where did the years go? It doesn’t seem possible that the little boys in that picture are now husbands and men with lives of their own. Yet the photograph doesn’t lie.

Time has a way of moving quietly. We rarely notice it day by day. Then an old picture, a family gathering, or a milestone birthday reminds us that the clock has been ticking all along.

Moses understood this reality when he prayed, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).

Of course, he had no photographs to look through. No family albums. No digital memories stored on a phone. But he had something else: a lifetime of memories. He remembered the triumphs and the failures, the joys and the sorrows, the victories and the disappointments. By the time he penned these words, he understood something that most young people struggle to grasp, and that is, life moves quickly.

The years have a way of slipping through our fingers. One day we are children dreaming about the future. Then we are raising our own children. Before long, we find ourselves looking at faded photographs and wondering where the decades went.

What Moses wrote, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was the realization that his life and ours are brief. James would later describe it as “a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Life is precious, but it is also fragile and fleeting.

When we are young, we rarely number our days. We live as though time is unlimited. We assume there will always be another opportunity, another year, another season. But wisdom teaches us otherwise. Wisdom reminds us that every day is a gift from God and that every day spent can never be reclaimed.

Moses understood that every day is a stewardship issue. He wasn’t asking God to help him count the number of days he had lived. He was asking for the wisdom to recognize the value of the remaining days and to invest them well.

Most people think of stewardship in terms of money, possessions, or resources. Yet time is perhaps the most valuable resource God has entrusted to us because once it is spent, it can never be recovered. We can earn more money, acquire more possessions, and even rebuild what has been lost. We cannot create another hour, another day, or another year.

After years of studying leadership and productivity, I’ve come to a simple conclusion: time management is a myth. We cannot manage time. Time moves forward whether we are ready or not. It pays no attention to our plans, our intentions, or our excuses. Every day, every hour, and every minute pass at the same pace.

The real issue is not managing time but managing ourselves within the time God has given us. The question is not, “How can I control time?” The question is, “How will I use the time entrusted to me?”

You cannot manage time. You can only manage yourself within the time God has given you.

Every conversation, every decision, every opportunity, and every relationship is part of that stewardship. We are constantly investing the days God has given us. The only question is whether we are investing them wisely.

When Moses prayed, “Teach us to number our days,” perhaps that prayer is more relevant today than ever. In a world filled with endless distractions, wisdom begins when we recognize that every day is a gift from God.

Someone said to me the other day, “I realize that my runway is getting shorter.” Those words stayed with me. The older we get, the more aware we become that time is not an unlimited resource. The years ahead are fewer than the years behind.

Have you ever stopped to consider the true value of time? We can lose money and earn it again. We can lose possessions and replace them. We can even recover from failures and setbacks. But no one can recover a single wasted day. Once it is gone, it is gone forever.

Whether God grants us seventy years, eighty years, or more, each of us is a steward of the life we have been given. The issue is not how much time we have, but what we do with the time entrusted to us.

My thoughts return to that faded photograph of my sons proudly holding their first catch. I can still remember the excitement in their eyes and the joy we shared that day. For them, it was an adventure. For me, it was one of those priceless moments a father never forgets. As I look at that faded photograph, I am reminded that time never stands still.

That realization has strengthened my resolve. I want to make the most of the days God has given me. I want to invest my time in things that matter, things that will outlive me, things that carry eternal significance.

One day, someone will be looking at photographs of their own life and asking the same question: Where did the years go?

The clock is ticking.

Teach us to number our days.

What about you?