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It’s About Time…

By January 9, 2013August 30th, 2022Devotional

The last several days I have been thinking quite a bit about time. It seems that everywhere I turn, people are obsessed with the clock. I guess it starts each year as we count down to the New Year and watch the ball drop in Times Square – it used to be with Dick Clark, but this year, Ryan Seacrest took over the main duties after the passing of Clark earlier in 2012. Every year, we start out January 1st with such hope for the year and by the end of December, we get all jazzed up about the incoming year and all the old stuff is a thing of the past.

More and more, we are an instant gratification society. Fast food, disposable dishes, even one-use medical equipment. We don’t spend the time to fix grand meals, or sit and have deep discussions about topics of national interest. That’s because we always have somewhere to go, somewhere to be and someone else to see. We buy pre-packaged products because it’s more convenient and we don’t want to take the time to do things the old fashioned ways. We truly are a society that values time and we rush through life trying to get to the next thing.

In fact, several years ago, I found myself caught up in this whole mess, wanting things to happen faster so I could get on to the next thing on my list. I guess you could call it wishing my life away. Ever do that? Wish the week-end was here, or that you could move the clock ahead to get to that long awaited vacation? I know that I used to do that… The problem is that when you live in the future, you miss so much of the present.

And God has great things in store for each of us if we will only live in the moment. I don’t mean to say that we should be irresponsible, but we should cherish the time that we have and not wish it away. Life moves quickly enough without giving up time of our own volition. One of the reasons that Janet and I drive as much as we do is that we relish the time together. Whenever we have a choice between flying and driving, we always take the car. Not only is it more convenient, but we are on our own schedule.

No airport security to worry about, or making sure we don’t miss the plane. We start when we want, stop where and when we want and have convenient transportation at our destination. I guess that’s why we drove to the Greenbrier last Sunday; and returned home today. Sure, it took 7-1/2 hours to get home, but it was a beautiful day to see God’s creation and parts of the country that aren’t a part of our everyday lives. And at least for us, seeing the mountains and the snow capped peaks just energizes us in a way that we hold God in even more awe than usual.

I’m not immune, though, from concentrating on time. I love collecting watches and clocks. We have many clocks throughout our home, so I guess that some people could say that I am obsessed with the passage of time. Maybe I am. Sometimes, I wish that I had dome things differently in the past, but I try not to dwell on the things I can’t change. And I try to slow down a bit and not rush through life as much as I used to.

All in all, God has quite a bit to say about time. There are more than 700 verses that reference time in the Bible. Of course, because God is eternal, there aren’t any deadlines on things that He has to get done – God has all the time in the world. The verse for this evening is probably the most famous one about time in the entire Bible. From Ecc. 3:1, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven…” In fact, in the first 8 verses of chapter three, Solomon, the author of Ecclesiates, uses the word “time” more than 29 times. I guess that it is important for us to think about time.

My encouragement this evening is to make sure that you realize God doesn’t want you to wish your life away. There is a time for everything and God wants you to experience the richness and fullness of every event in your life. My prayer is that you will take the TIME to enjoy all that God has created for you. Because, otherwise, some day you will look back and wonder what happened to all the time in your life… Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…

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