"To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven" (Eccl. 3:1). Those words still ring loudly and clearly three millennia later. Although there were many things Solomon was unable to discover or understand in life (because God is working from-and-for eternity), he understood the brevity and frailty of life. He understood there was an appointed time for every purpose, as well as an allotment of time for every person.

He wrote, "For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life which he passes like a shadow?" (Eccl. 6:12a). Job cried out, "My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle" (Job 7:6a). David requested, "Lord, make me to know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am" (Psalm 39:4). James undercut his proud and presumptuous readers when he wrote, "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit';whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that'" (James 4:13-15).

No matter who we are, where we live, or what we do - time is an extremely precious possession. So how do we make the most of our time?

1. Wisely invest it as a gift from God. No matter our occupation or career, time is not ours to waste, but His to invest; it's not ours to abuse, but His to use - toward His eternal plan and program and all for His glory.

2. Wake up to its opportunities. After Rip van Winkle slept away 20 years of his life, he finally awoke and found everything had changed! We may not sleep through a revolution, but if we're not careful we can go through life aimlessly and carelessly; and fail to take advantage of Godgiven opportunities.

3. Walk carefully to avoid distractions. Each of us has things and people that compete for our time on a daily basis. But the truth is, if we don't make the decisions in our lives somebody else will make them for us, but they don't have our priorities. Several years ago an experienced cotton-mill manager said, "The greatest danger is letting the urgent things crowd out the important."

4. Understand the will of the Lord. Making the most of our time requires personal discipline. The best way to keep our priorities straight at home, school, or the workplace, is through personal Bible study, prayer, and application of God's Word. A clear sense of purpose keeps us fresh and focused for the task ahead.

5. Walk in the Spirit. For starters, God wants us to be saved. Once we're saved, He commands us to walk in the Spirit or be filled with the Spirit. Life is too fragile and too brief, the journey too great, and the battle too tough, to walk in our own strength.

None of us knows how long or short our allotment of time will be. However, God gives each of us a span of time to prepare for eternity today! He gives you a period of grace to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord - today! Don't wait too late and let procrastination become the thief of your time and the thief of your soul.

The time it has taken you to read this article is but a speck of dust on the scales of eternity.