在2019年3月14日，美國太空總署發射火箭，將太空人克里斯蒂娜．科赫（Christina Koch）送上國際太空站。科赫在328天後才返回地球，成為有史以來連續在太空停留時間最長的女性。她在距離地球約409公里的太空生活中，有一個螢幕天天記錄她的時間，以五分鐘為單位。她每天得要完成無數的工作事項（從進餐到做實驗），一個小時又一個小時，一條紅線在螢幕上緩緩展延，持續顯示科赫的工作進度是超前或是落後。一分一秒都不能浪費！

雖然使徒保羅並沒有推薦我們使用像「紅線」這麼干擾人的工具來控管生活步調，不過他的確鼓勵我們，要謹慎地使用寶貴而有限的時間。他寫道：「你們要謹慎行事，不要像愚昧人，當像智慧人。要愛惜光陰，因為現今的世代邪惡」（以弗所書5章15-16節）。上帝以祂的智慧教導我們，要小心謹慎地度過每一天，用這些時間來學習順服祂、愛鄰舍，以及參與耶穌賦予我們的大使命。可嘆的是，我們很可能忽略了如此富有智慧的教導，糊裡糊塗地過日子（17節），為追求功名利祿而虛度光陰。

我們不必為了如何利用時間而過度煩惱，只要以順服與信心來跟隨上帝，祂就會幫助我們善用時間。

On March 14, 2019, NASA rockets ignited, catapulting astronaut Christina Koch toward the International Space Station. Koch wouldn’t return to Earth for 328 days, giving her the record for the longest continuous space flight by a woman. Every day, living roughly 254 miles above the Earth, a screen kept track of the astronaut’s time in five-minute increments. She had a myriad of daily tasks to complete (from meals to experiments), and—hour after hour—a red line inched along the display, constantly showing whether Koch was ahead or behind schedule. Not a moment to waste.

While certainly not recommending anything so intrusive as a red line ruling over our life, the apostle Paul did encourage us to carefully use our precious, limited resource of time. “Be very careful then, how you live,” he wrote, “not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16). God’s wisdom instructs us to fill our days with intention and care, employing them to practice obedience to Him, to love our neighbor, and to participate in Jesus’ ongoing redemption in the world. Sadly, it’s entirely possible to ignore wisdom’s instruction and instead use our time foolishly (v. 17), frittering away our years in selfish or destructive pursuits.

The point isn’t to obsessively fret about time but simply to follow God in obedience and trust. He will help us make the most of our days.