When life is really busy, I’ve often said, “I wish there were more hours in the day.” But do I really want that? There have been times in my life when I have worked 15+ hours per day at my job, and then had to go home and clean house, cook dinner and attend to the dogs. Then there have been the times when I have travelled internationally for work – sometimes travelling for 30 hours straight. But would a longer day have made a difference? God created our time frame for earth. In His wisdom, He created a day to be 24 hours.
Then God said: Let there be light, and there was light. God saw that the light was good. God then separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” Evening came, and morning followed—the first day (Genesis 1:3-5).
24 hours is the best amount of hours per day. In 24 hours, we can set aside time to study God’s word, work, spend time with family, relax and sleep. We have to remember, God created us and knows exactly what our bodies, emotions and spirits need to be healthy and happy. It is up to us to make God our guide through each day. Do you spend time at the beginning of each day, in consultation with God as to how you should spend that day? Since God made time, He is the one who can show us how to use it for his glory.
You may not want to consult God about your time because you are afraid He will ask you to do more than you want, or to work all the time. We need to remember, God rested after creating the world and all that is in it. He knows the importance of rest. Understanding this importance has been a long time coming in our culture which pressures us to work 24/7. However, “when we treat rest as work’s equal partner, recognize it as a playground for the creative mind and a springboard for new ideas, and learn ways to take rest more effectively, we elevate it into something valuable that can help calm our days, organize our lives, give us more time, and help us achieve more while working less (Pang, 2017).”
Planning your work day needs to consider what God wants you to do in that day. This may be planned, or maybe God interrupts your plan to bring in something He would like you to do that you did not foresee. Either way, we need to be sure to do His will in our day. I’ll be honest, this has been a struggle for me. I am a goal-oriented person, and I will miss the Holy Spirit’s urging for me to do something if it doesn’t fit into my goal. However, I have had to learn to be flexible, so that my goal, even though I may think it is God’s goal at the time, may be interrupted in order to fulfill God’s desires. When I do give into “God’s interruptions,” I am often blessed by taking the time to do what He has shown me to do.
And then there are those 24 hours that because Satan is in this world may be absolutely terrible. We have all had those days where everything goes wrong. They usually start out for me as having trouble getting out of the house. Have you ever had that morning where you leave to get to work, reach the car and realize you have forgotten something? Then you have to go back in the house, get what you forgot and go back to your car, only to realize, you left your keys in the house and are now locked out? You get the picture of how the rest of the day will go. What do you do with this kind of 24 hours? This is when I’m most thankful that a day is only 24 hours. I say to myself, with God’s help, I can make it through this day, as best as possible, but tomorrow is a new day. Then I usually try to go to bed early to get as much rest as possible and be at my best for the next day. Are these kinds of days in God’s plan? He knows how we get frustrated and that “life happens.” This is why Jesus said:
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:28-34, NIV)”
And when we are blessed with one of those full, productive, joyous 24 hours life is good. But can you imagine if a day was more than 24 hours? That happiness would turn into utter exhaustion. It is satisfying to lay down at night and go right to sleep because your day has been completely full. Our sleep is then restorative and we are able to wake the next morning ready to do God’s will again.
But what if your sleep hasn’t been uninterrupted and you have been up and down all night? This is where I begin the day praying, I can do all things through Him [God] who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13). God never disappoints, He always gets me through the rough days when my strength is nonexistent.
Our God is perfect and He perfectly created a day on earth to be 24 hours. This amount of time per day allows us to be creative and productive at work and still have energy to spend time with our families and friends. It allows us time to be rejuvenated with sleep. It also allows us time to spend time with our Creator, giving Him praise and learning everyday more about His character and His will for our lives.
You may be asking how 24 hours allows one to do all these things. This is when priorities come into play. Our priorities should be, God first, family second and work third. God should permeate all we do. He should be in every decision which will make Him in every success and failure. He should be such a part of your life that your spouse and children feel His presence every day. In this way, we know that God is always with us and His hope permeates our lives. Then we can thank Him and say, “In His wisdom – 24 hours.”
Resources:
Pang, A. May 11, 2017. How Resting Can Boost Your Productivity. Greater Good Magazine: Science-based Insights for a Meaningful Life. Https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_resting_more_can_boost_your_productivity. Retrieved on October 27, 2021.
