Perfect Use of Time
I intend to use every moment of time, the past, the present and the future, in the most perfect manner. And I intend to do what would be done if this were really to happen. (OOCC, X, pp. 75 - 76; STA, 70)
Time, though a free gift of God to the human person, is not to be squandered and wasted. It must be put to use in the most perfect way. The proper use of time calls for planning and organizing the time that is at one’s disposal. The right time management implies that one prioritizes the various tasks one is expected to accomplish. The setting of priorities is an important element of time management. The priorities must be listed in relation to the importance of a particular task and its relevance to the life of a person. After the priority list is made, a person allots the available time in relation to the significance of the work in question. The allotment of the right proportion of time, relative to the importance of the priority, can only be achieved when one evaluates one’s past and learns from it, organizes one’s present, and meaningfully plans for the future in light of past and present experiences. When one’s life is focused in this manner, he would be the perfect user of the gift of time. Each day of St. Vincent Pallotti’s life was organized very systematically. He had a list of priorities in his life, both in the dimension of his personal spiritual life and in his life of the apostolate. He allocated sufficient time for the inner and outer aspects of his life systematically, thereby making fruitful use of his time.
How do I use my time? Do I set priorities in my life so as to utilize the time at my disposal in the best way? Do I allot the right proportion of the available time relative to the importance of the priority? Do I learn from my past, live the present, and plan for the future meaningfully?
Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should. (Ps. 90: 20)