Meander through the self-help section of the local bookstore and you’ll notice that there’s no shortage of advice on the topic of living wisely. Wisdom, it seems, is on all of our minds. It makes sense. We’ve all got one life to live, so let’s not waste our time on what doesn’t matter, right?
Turns out this isn’t a 21st century concern. Wisdom was on the apostle Paul’s mind as well. He makes the very same point in Ephesians 5:15–16 when he writes, “Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of time, because the days are evil.”
There are many ways one could answer the question, “how does a person live wisely?” Save money. Eat well and exercise. Don’t scroll your life away in front of a screen. Paul chooses to link wise living with an awareness of our time. “Make the most of time because the days are evil.”
It’s a curious phrase, but what I think he means when he says “the days are evil” is that we should be aware of the story we’re in. See, for many in our world life is about ourselves. We spend our time focused on us, pursuing our own desires, gaining wealth and prestige for our own sake, living as if we are the center of the universe, the hero of the story. And the days are evil when I become convinced that the story is about me and not God. The days are evil when I become consumed by my own selfish pursuits instead of sharing the good news of God. But, according to Paul, to live like that is, well, unwise.
Because, in fact, we are in God’s story. And in God’s story, a new day has begun in Christ, a new creation has been spoken into existence amidst the old, and Christ — not us — is the center of all things. So if we are to live wisely, then we must spend our time as if this is true.
To live wisely, then, is to be awake to our own humanity with all its limitations, resisting the message of go and go, give and give, busy is better. To live wisely is to delight in the moments given to us, rather than buying into the feeling that there’s never enough time. To live wisely is to use each present opportunity to the fullness of God’s glory, rather than stumble around in the directionless haze of fleeting personal glory. Because when we are awake to the truth of God’s story, we use our time differently than the world around us. This, Paul says, is what it means to live wisely.
I don’t always think about how I spend my time. When I do, I think about myself and my to-do list more than God and what He’s up to in the world. But maybe I can think of myself less this week? I reckon it’s a step in the wise direction.
Joshua Gorenflo and his wife, Kya, are ministers at Kenai Fellowship, Mile 8.5 on the Kenai Spur Highway. Worship is 11 a.m. on Sundays. Streamed live at kenaifellowship.com.
