Monday Manna -  Time: Friend or Foe?

 
From: "Monday Manna -" <send05@PROTECTED>
Subject: Monday Manna -  Time: Friend or Foe?
Date: October 28th 2018

MONDAY MANNA
October 29, 2018

Twenty-one years at service to the world’s business community


Time: Friend or Foe?

By Robert J. Tamasy

In the business and professional world, as well as other areas of life, time is somewhat of a paradox. When facing an inflexible deadline, time seems to move incredibly fast, escalating our stress levels. But when we are anxiously awaiting an important decision – perhaps a job promotion, or a potential client deciding whether to sign a contract – the pace of time can seem to slow down significantly.

 

During a recent trip to Italy, I observed what occurs in much of Europe. Businesses, including retailers and restaurants, often close during the midafternoon hours to allow everyone to take a rest and become refreshed. It is not uncommon for individuals in Europe to take several weeks, even a month, off from work during the summer months.

 

Americans, by contrast, often seem enslaved by time. Many are reluctant to take vacations, for fear a competitor will gain an edge on them or, perhaps, their boss will find someone else to fill their position while they are gone. Some workers even gobble down lunches at their desks, afraid of falling behind in their job demands.

 

Just weeks ago, I underwent a second heart surgery, which presented me with a different perspective on time. This surgery, to replace a damaged aortic valve, was accomplished through a much less invasive procedure than my open-heart surgery nearly 12 years ago. So the recovery has been much easier and faster; but the seriousness of the operation still helped to put things in perspective.

 

From a job standpoint, the work I do, although I believe it is important, would quickly be done by someone else if I were no longer able to do it. Some of the things I do simply would no longer be done at all. But from the standpoint of relationships I have – with my wife, children, grandchildren, friends, and the men I meet with in mentoring/discipling relationships – that is where my absence would be felt the most.

 

So the question is: Moving forward, where is my time best invested? Not to say I should not continue to do the work I enjoy and feel called to do, but not at the expense of time I should be spending with the important people in my life.

 

In the Bible, it admonishes us to “redeem the time for the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16). This does not mean time is inherently bad, but the passage of time continues relentlessly, whether we attempt to use it wisely or not. I recall the classes in time management I attended years ago. In reality, “time management” is a misnomer because we cannot “manage” it. We cannot put it into a safety deposit box or a self-storage unit for later use. It is not a commodity we can preserve; we can only resolve to utilize it as effectively and meaningfully as possible.

 

Another biblical passage on time, Ecclesiastes 3:1-18, offers the perspective. “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven….” To me, this means there are times for focusing my attention and energy to meet critical deadlines, but also there are times for being with my family, pursuing favorite pastimes or hobbies, or simply seeking to restore myself physically, mentally and spiritually. As someone has said, it is unlikely anyone on their deathbed has sincerely announced with regret, “I wish I had spent more time at work.”

 

 


Robert J. Tamasy has written Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; Tufting Legacies; coauthored with David A. Stoddard, The Heart of Mentoring, and edited numerous other books, including Advancing Through Adversity by Mike Landry. Bob’s website is www.bobtamasy-readywriterink.com, and his biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com.


© MONDAY MANNA is a weekly issue of CBMC INTERNATIONAL a non-profit, evangelical ministry that exists to serve business and professional people as followers of Jesus; to present Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior to business and professional men. © 2018 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO CBMC BRASIL - adm.mana@PROTECTED - www.cbmc.org.br Also available in German, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish versions. If you don't want to receive this e-mail article, please send a message to the person who sent it to you, or if you have received it directly from CBMC, please contact http://www.cbmc.org.br


Reflection/Discussion Questions

 

1. Does it seem that time passes quickly sometimes, and drags along very slowly in other circumstances? Why do you think this is the case?

2. Have you ever thought about the irony of studying “time management,” when the passage of time cannot truly be managed or controlled?

3. Where do you fall in terms of time/work philosophy? Are you diligent to take time off from work when you have the opportunity, enjoying being able to rest and rejuvenate? Or do you typically regard time as an enemy, determining to cram as much work and activity as possible into every waking minute or hour? In either case, what serves as your motivation?

4. How do you – or could you – go about “redeeming the time” more effectively?

If you have a Bible and would like to read more about principles it presents, consider the following passages: Proverbs 23:4-5; Ecclesiastes 3:1-18; Galatians 6:10; Colossians 4:5-6.

Forward to a Friend
 
  • This mailing list is a public mailing list - anyone may join or leave, at any time.
  • This mailing list is announce-only.

Monday Manna is a weekly edition with normal day by day situations in our working place, and always based in the Bible.

Privacy Policy:

Privacy Policy

Data privacy policy At CBMC, we respect the privacy of our web site visitors and value the protection of personal data and we therefore place emphasis on protecting your privacy. We want to make you comfortable with our data privacy policy and the security measures that we take to protect your personal information. If you give us personal information, we will treat it according to this policy. This Data Privacy Policy explains and clarifies how we, as data controller, treat our visitor’s and customer’s personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Brazilian LGPD. This policy will apply in situations where CBMC (hereinafter ‘us’, ‘our’ and ‘we’) treats personal information collected from the site. By using our site, you agree that your personal information is processed in accordance with this Data Privacy Policy. We encourage you to read this privacy policy.

Collection of information When a visitor to our website e-mails us via the website, we collect personally identifiable information, including name, title, company, address, e-mail address, phone numbers, and so on. Use of information The information we collect from you may be used in the following ways:

• To give you a more personalised service Your information helps us better meet your individual needs. If you have enabled cookies in your browser, that information can be used to be able to provide a personalised user experience. • Improving and optimising our website We are constantly striving to improve our website based on your information and views. • Improve our client service Your information helps us provide you with more efficient customer service and support. • Improve our communication The e-mail address you provide us with can be used to send you information and updates about similar services, CBMC’s events etc. Please note: you can cancel your subscription at any time by following the instructions at the bottom of each email. If you have enabled cookies in your browser, your cookie information can be combined with data you have provided on our site to improve the customer communication.

Third parties We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer the data we collect to outside parties. This does not include website hosting partners and other parties who assist us in operating our website, conducting our business, or serving our users, so long as those parties agree to keep this information confidential. We may also release information when its release is appropriate to comply with the law, enforce our site policies, or protect ours or others' rights, property or safety. However, non-personally identifiable visitor information may be provided to other parties for marketing, advertising, or other uses.

Google's advertising requirements can be summed up by Google's Advertising Principles. They are put in place to provide a positive experience for users. We, along with third-party vendors such as Google use first-party cookies (such as the Google Analytics cookies) to compile data regarding user interactions with ad impressions and other ad service functions as they relate to our website. Users can set preferences for how Google advertises to you using the Google Ad Settings page. Alternatively, you can opt out by visiting the Network Advertising Initiative Opt Out page or by using the Google Analytics Opt Out Browser add on.

Cookies In order to improve your use of this site, we may use cookies. Cookies are small files that a web site or service provider sends to the hard disk of your computer through the browser (if you allow) and which causes the site to recognize your browser and can retrieve and remember certain information. The use of cookies helps us to execute some essential functionalities and improve the user experience in our web shop as well as compile statistics on traffic and communication on the site. Cookies tell us where our site's users have visited, help us measure and target our advertising and marketing activities as well as search results through internet search engines, and provide us with information about our users so that we can develop our online services. Cookies do only record the Internet Protocol address of the visitors, and do not provide us with any personal information about the visitors of this site. You can also choose to turn off cookies in your browser, and / or delete stored cookies in your web browser. Note that blocking cookies may affect the functionality of the site.

Your personal rights You are entitled to request a report on what personal information we have about you by requesting a socalled registry extract. This can be made free of charge once a year. You also have the right to request that incorrect information about you shall be corrected, as well as the ability to request removal of your personal information. You have the right to withdraw your consent to processing of personal data and to prohibit the use of your personal information for direct marketing purposes.

To submit any request, please contact cbmcbrasil@cbmc.org.br for more information. You have the right to submit complains about processing of your personal data to the national supervisory authority.

Changes to this Data Privacy Policy CBMC reserves the right to update or change this Data Privacy Policy at any time and you should visit this site regularly to obtain the latest version.

Contact If you have any questions regarding this Data Privacy Policy or our processing of personal data, or want to contact us regarding your personal data, please contact cbmcbrasil@cbmc.org.br