Time - Durations or Opportunities?

 “You’re on leave today?” My neighbour asked as we stepped into the lift of our HDB (Housing Development Block) block this morning.

“No. I have stop working. I have retired?”

“Oh, few years ago, I stopped work for 7 months and was so bored that I came out of retirement and went back to work.” My neighbour told me. He just could not find anything meaningful to do with his time.

……

Not me. As they say: “Time flies”, when you are busy. Or like my neighbour: “Time crawl”, when you are bored.

But for me, I say: “Time is life”

Every day is an opportunity to serve the family; grow stronger physically; talk to God; learn new things; meditate, reflect and journal / blog; or reach out to people when they talk to you, like this neighbour. I see this conversation as a “Kairos Moment”, which we happened to meet. Was that a divine appointment? In the Greek vocabulary, Time is either Chronos (cronoV) or Kairos (kairoV). There is another Greek word for time actually, that is seldom heard by preachers but learnt during my Greek Class. It is Hora (wra) = hour. Jesus used it when He said: “The hour has come…”

Time is the only resource God has given to everyone who has breath. So long as you has life – all living things, you are given 24 hours each day to live, enjoy, bless others, serve others, and do meaningful work or to just relax. The choice is yours, but don’t abuse it or it will cause your life and soon you are dead; and time is taken away from you.

 

#1. Chronos Time – A duration of a period

Chronos time refer to a date of an occurrence; like my birthdate and the duration of my school days. The year 2020 is a chronos time that we will all remembered as the COVID year.

 

#2. Kairos Time – A moment of opportunities

Kairos Time is usually use a time with a purpose, as a time that is used with qualities. Chronos marks quantity; while Kairos as quality. It is the time wisely used and fulfil certain objectives and purpose. It can be said a time well used. Chronos time will always pass by, but when we capture that moment and use it meaningfully or wisely, it becomes a Kairos Timing. (Just like when you meet a friend and start talking meaningfully; or see a person in need and seize the opportunity to bless him, etc).

¹⁵ Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of the time (Kairos), because the days are evil. ¹⁷ So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord (Ephesians 5:15-17 NRSV)

In Eph 5:15-17 Apostle Paul tells us how to be wise with our time:

(1) Be careful how we live;

(2) Understand the will of the LORD for us.

In simple words, don’t use your time for evil thoughts, words or action (then it became “the days are evil” verse 16). Occasionally, I fall into this trap by being angry for too long, or worry the whole day, etc. These are days of Chronos time. However, there are days of Kairos time, when I deliberately worship God and meditate/memorise on His Word, even as I was jogging along the beaches of Pasir Ris Park. An hour or two like this is always time of blessings. Also, when we choose to use time as Kairos and not chronos, then, my speech to people will usually be courteous and polite because I choose to make it a Kairos moment, which in a way is also the will of the Lord for us as Christians. Even in sickness and home-bound, I can set a period of time to pray and reflect as I rest and recuperate. In resting and relaxing, I choose to quietly recite a few memorized Bible verses.

The point of being Kairos is to be deliberate /careful in our thoughts, words and actions. We decide not to let the situations control our emotions or actions but rather, let the will of the Lord (that is, Bible values and principles) decide how we should behave at any moments. And so, we need to know the Bible well enough to live right, and use our time wisely until it becomes habitual. It will be life long process. So, may God helps us!

Of course, we can also spend chronos time without feeling guilty. I still play my Jigsaw Sudoku games every day (the more difficult it is, the more time it is used up). It is a way of relaxing and sharpening my reasoning.  I still jog normally and watch people along the way on some days. We don’t need to keep our “Spiritual Bow & Arrow” taut and tense all day. Jesus told His disciples to go somewhere just to rest & relax after a day of ministry.

…

And so the next time you talk to someone, may this short writing trigger you in your conversation and turn the Chronos timing into a Kairos moment.

God has surely triggered my thoughts today to reflect. Ephesians 5:15-17 just pop out of my head.

 

So, how do you use your time? Would love to hear from you how else can we use our time wisely.

Agape