“Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants.” Ephesians 5:17 MSG

What do you really want to accomplish with your time and how will you know when you are accomplishing it? Are you managing your time so that you are fulfilling your purpose?

Here’s a revelation for evaluating your time management. Time management is not about getting more done. Wow! How’s that for a shocker? That contradicts so much of the internet’s time management advice. So, what does it mean to manage time well?

Using time well isn’t just about being productive, it’s about being fruitful. The Industrial Revolution changed the way people think about productivity. Instead of the fruitfulness associated with an abundant harvest, as our agricultural-based society of the past viewed it, it became about doing and making more.

Fruitfulness depends on factors outside human control. It depends on factors that only God controls. Productivity is all about self-reliance and man-made options. Productivity treats people like machines that exist to make more. Fruitfulness is about fulfilling a God-designed pattern to the fullest— seed, soil, sun, rain, growth, harvest. There are few things that humans can do to control those. We can only add to what depends on the God who controls nature. Fruitfulness has to do with growth and purpose.

Time management from a fruitfulness perspective is about growth rather than productivity. It’s about becoming not doing. It is about aligning with the purpose you were created for, not just getting more done. It’s about planning to do the things that cause you to flourish.

Flourishing involves the whole self. Too many productivity hacks masquerading as time management tips are about getting more work done rather than living a well-rounded life. To flourish means to be fulfilled. To be fulfilled is to live according to design and purpose. Wouldn’t you rather be fruitful than productive?

Dear Friend, simply managing your time to get more done will never be fulfilling. You may be satisfied, feeling like you have accomplished something. But you won’t be fulfilled. That comes from living according to your God-designed purpose. I want you to flourish! To be fulfilled. To live out the purpose God has designed you for. Are you ready to be fruitful?

Key Question: Do you manage your time to be productive or fruitful?

A Scripture to Consider: “Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants. “ Ephesians 5:17 MSG

A YES Challenge: Set aside a few minutes to evaluate your thinking about time management. What guides your schedule? What is one thing you can change today that will lead to greater fruitfulness?

Prayer: Father, thank You for creating me! You designed me to bear fruit that will last for Your honor and glory. Guide me as I re-evaluate how I plan my time. I don’t want to just get more done. I want to do the things that lead to fruitfulness and fulfillment of Your purpose for me. My life belongs to You. Amen.

September 12, 2026

This is Not Forever

“For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT

As I tearfully opened the sodden boxes of our stored belongings, wondering what was ruined, a verse came to mind,

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” Matthew 6:19-21 NLT

We were temporarily living with my parents, and our stuff was stored in Tom’s parents' garage. They had a plumbing issue in their bathroom above the garage, causing a leak that soaked several of our boxes and other items, including our mattress. We weren’t sure what was salvageable.

That period of time was already difficult. We were waiting for a job to open up and unsure how long that would take, how long we would be living with my parents, how long our stuff would be stored. Both sets of parents had been patient, loving, and gracious. There was no one to blame for the water damage. Sometimes things just happen.

But when that verse popped into my brain, it completely changed my perspective on going through the damage. The tears didn’t stop. There was some mourning and disappointment. But at the same time, there was hope. This was temporary. These things were just things. What really mattered was how I responded. I could choose an eternal perspective. I could choose to treasure Christ more than an earthly possession.

As it turned out, very few of our things were unsalvageable, and insurance more than covered anything that was lost. But the eternal perspective I gained is a treasure that I still carry. That simple shift helped me through the three and a half years of living in the in-between.