After that big heading – ‘It’s Time’ – I have to admit that there is no grand announcement.
I have thoroughly enjoyed a book about time this past week and had even outlined a blog post based on it. Then this morning our pastor preached about ‘time’. I sense that God has a lesson for me to learn, and this blog post is my way of processing. If it helps another person along the way, that’s even better.
This is not how you’re meant to start a post. Bloggers are advised to start with an attention grabbing question. If you’re still with me, here goes … take two.
How do I use well the weeks allotted to me?
Did you know that, on average, Americans live for four thousand weeks each? The overall lifespan of Australians is a little longer. You can check those figures and more here if you’re interested: https://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.688
I have spent one of my four thousand weeks at home this past week. I had a lovely weekend staying with dear friends seven days ago, one of whom later tested positive for covid. Hence my time at home.
I have enjoyed a leisurely week of pottering about. I have done some long overdue jobs. I’ve spent time with friends online. And I have read a book. A book called ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ by Oliver Burkeman.
Then today, in our associate’s pastor’s sermon on ‘time’ – a similar topic – I was challenged again. In case you wondered, of course I ‘attended’ church online. I am isolating until a whisker past midnight tonight, as I write. God willing.
καιρὸς (kairos) – Time for something significant
The opening line of today’s sermon was, ‘It’s Time’. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, and so I am naming this blog post, ‘It’s Time’. Thanks, Pastor Andrew.
We learnt about the Greek concept of καιρὸς (kairos), which is the sense of ‘time’ in terms of it being the opportune time for a particular event or action. In the written records of Jesus’ announcement, ‘The time has come,’ at the beginning of his public ministry, for example, the word καιρὸς (kairos) was used.
Our pastor challenged us to seek God’s direction and to commit wholeheartedly to that to which he is calling us, holding ourselves accountable to one another. His own calling, and that of his family, is fairly clear … it was time for them to say goodbye and move to a new sphere of ministry. This was his ‘farewell sermon’.
What I am doing with my four thousand weeks? I’m already well over halfway through. Although not unhappy with the way I’ve spent my first 2821 weeks, I’d like to be more intentional about how I use the time that remains to me.
In the rest of this blog post, I will share just three gems from that book, ‘Four Thousand Weeks’. The author does not purport to be a Christian, but the insights I have gleaned from the wisdom of that self-proclaimed ‘former productivity guru’ are certainly applicable to people like me. And that probably includes you, if you’re still reading along.
Accept our limitations
Over this past week at home, I rather fancied digging up my garden and shovelling compost through it all, fixing the gate, cleaning the walls, writing the first draft of a book, organising my cupboards and drawers, sorting the contents of my fridge and freezer, working through a Tibetan language textbook, reading the book about time that I have referred to as well as a travel book about a couple walking along the south-west coast of Britain and keeping up my usual online commitments.
Can you guess how much of that ambitious list I actually achieved?
We are not God. We are not even autonomous. The Bible is full of instructions and examples of how we are members of a body, each with different roles and gifts.
Pick three priorities, advised the author of ‘Four Thousand Weeks’. Then focus on one at a time.
One.
Of course, it’s fine to potter in the garden and keep my home clean and tidy. But I need to let go of unreasonable aspirations. Most dangerous, Burkeman suggests, are those things which we REALLY want to do and which may well rank fourth or fifth in our list of priorities.
He suggests that procrastination is caused, in part, by our unwillingness to accept our limitations. We put off doing something important because we think that we should be able to do it and everything else as well. We refuse to accept the alternative.
I have a book project. I’m excited about it. Yet most days I put off working on my book, even though I would call it a very high priority. Instead of sitting down to it, I busy myself with administrative tasks, check social media and the news headlines, trim my toenails, empty my compost container and more. None of these things are bad and some are even necessary … but I can’t do everything. If the book is my priority, then working on the book is what I want to be doing first and foremost.
It’s time … time to accept my limitations and to choose my priorities.
Accept the ‘pain’ of imperfection
I want it and I want it NOW.
‘It’ being success and completion. Now every author will tell you that before their book or article is published, they produce a pretty poor first draft. Their second draft isn’t much better. But they keep working on it. This blog post included.
The author of ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ suggests that we need to learn to face the pain of incompletion and of exerting patience. That, too, I realise, is another reason why I procrastinate with my writing project. It isn’t comfortable to have a far-less-than-perfect project. In fact, sometimes it feels almost painful to just sit and focus on even a small section of it. I’m a modern woman who is used to sound bite equivalents of information and I am ridiculously easily distracted.
As followers of Jesus, should we not be even more equipped than the average atheist to accept the pain of imperfection? There are many magnificent passages in the New Testament about this frustration, along with the hope of one day finally being perfect, like Jesus. The apostle Paul expressed it like this:
I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:10-14 NIV
It’s time … time to accept the pain of imperfection and push through.
Break tasks down
We have, on average, about four thousand weeks in life. What can I do in one week?
We have 24 hours in a day. What can I do in one hour?
I have 20 minutes right now. What can I do in 20 minutes?
The author of ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ formerly wrote about techniques to improve productivity – that was his profession. It’s a rather niche market, I know. These days, he focuses more on writing about how to live a fulfilled life.
His tip about breaking big jobs down into smaller units remains helpful. I’ve had success with it before, using a technique marketed as ‘The Pomodoro Technique’. How do I use the time that God has given me right here and now?
I’m feeling quite overwhelmed about the idea of writing a book. It’s too big a job. Even a simple blog post always takes far longer than I anticipate. Who am I to write about matters on which others are far better qualified? (The planned book is about cross-cultural missions.) Yet I perceive that there is a gap in the resources out there and that God has called me to write in this space.
With the help of a friend, I have already broken the dreamed-of-book down into smaller chunks. With the accountability support of another friend, I am now plugging away on it at 20 minutes at a time. Some days, I simply open the document and edit a little. If that’s all I can do, that’s fine. At least it is something.
It’s time … time to settle down and focus on one very small part of my project at a time.
It’s time
We have four thousand weeks each, on average. We can’t do everything. We are each uniquely gifted and called. What is God asking of each of us?
In my case, I sense that it is time to get this book project completed.
I love it when themes emerge from various spheres of life. This past week, it has been the book I have read (Four Thousand Weeks), outlining this blog post ready to write up today, then the sermon given at church this morning.
It’s time for action.
Well … action on the book project, anyhow.