What is time ?

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I tried to find out what time is and its significance in life, and observed   that it has no simple universal definition. It is defined in different contexts.  In physics, it is defined by its measurement. It is what a clock reads. It is a scalar quantity like mass, length and charge. In chemistry, the rate of reaction can be defined as the decrease in the concentration of reactants per unit time or the increase in the concentration of the product per unit time.

In management, time management refers to managing time effectively so that the right time is allocated to the right activity. Effective time management allows individuals to assign specific time slots to activities as per their importance. As a matter of fact, man just applies time to knowledge.

Time has provided invisible demarcation in the world, dividing it into zones. A zone is a region of the globe that observes a uniform standard time. There are 24 time zones in the world. In the USA alone there are six time zones.

Man applies time in all his endeavours but the truth is that God created time.  And we live our life in times and seasons. That is why we cannot live forever.  Nothing on earth that relates with times and seasons lasts forever. On the other hand, God lives in eternity, with no beginning and no end. He is not limited to times and seasons.

2 Peter 3:8 says, “ But do not overlook this  fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (ESV). By human understanding, there is a vast difference between one day and a thousand years. But to God, there is no difference. The delay of a thousand years is like putting off  a thing for a day .

An account of how time was created is given in the book of Genesis. Chapter 1 verse 3-5 says, “Then God said, ‘Let there be light;’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.” Verse 14 says, “Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years.” (NAS). God made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also.

With the greater light (sun) and the lesser light (moon) and also the stars, God created days (morning and evening constituting a day) to mark times and seasons. This enables us to have divisions in seconds, minutes and hours and also weeks, months and years.

It is noteworthy that the first thing God created after the heavens and the earth  was light in the earth that was formless and void, with darkness over the surface of the deep and the Spirit of God hovering over the waters. My deduction is that time originated from light which is the source of all forces.

We live in times and seasons. Everything on earth is controlled or limited by times and seasons and therefore temporary.  Man would be immortal and eternal if not limited by time. With the knowledge of times and seasons, we can manage our lives. In order to live a successful life, you must understand the essence of times and seasons and do everything at the proper time. That’s why Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven.” (Amp).

I believe that on this statement hinges all man’s successes and failures. Timing makes all the difference in our lives. It is vitally important. The secret to peace with God is to discover and accept God’s perfect timing. Moving ahead without God’s timing is simply heading towards crisis.  King Solomon expounded this truth about time when he wrote, “He has made everything beautiful in its time” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

The children  of Issachar  were said to have understanding of the times (1 Chronicles 12:32) and, as a result, their knowledge and judgement provided needed help in making decisions for the nation of Israel. Our political leaders today need to understand the times in order to get the country out of the current recession. The church leaders need understanding of the times in order to make the gospel relevant to people’s lives.

Businesses are controlled by times and seasons. A business that fails to understand times and seasons may be promoting certain products at the wrong season.  For instance, during winter in temperate regions, clothing shops do not sell summer dresses.

Your time is your life. Management of your time means management of your life. Benjamin Franklin said, “Do you love life? Then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff that life is made of.”