“Who took it? Where did it go? Why did they want it?” – just a few of the questions you get when you try to explain “losing an hour” due to daylight savings time to a 4, 6 and 8 year old. Needless to say, the conversation was probably not one of my more productive ones. It did, however, leave me thinking about time and what a gift it is.
The Psalmist sums it up nicely when he says to God, “My times are in your hand (Psalm 31:15).” The reality of this phrase is tremendous. The totality of all the time that I will ever have is under God’s sovereign control. This is obviously talking primarily about one’s lifespan, but what is life if not the sum of all our days, hours and minutes?
Each moment is another precious gift from God. It is a gift to be treasured for its hope and potential and to be redeemed for God’s purposes (Eph 5:16). It is a gift to be accepted graciously, without, presumption, for we are not guaranteed anything more than our present breath, and life itself is fleeting (James 4:14).
We can waste this precious gift in as many ways as we can imagine. We can consume it upon our own selfish desires or throw it away after empty emotions like bitterness, anger, jealousy, fear, doubt. We can abuse it through laziness or spend it all on self-pity. Countless are the ways to miss out on the joy of this precious gift.
On the other hand, one of the great blessings of life is that this joy can be experienced through equally numerous ways. We can treasure it by serving others and store it up for eternity through love, hope, gratitude, joy and forgiveness. We can make it count by using it to worship and praise our wonderful Lord.
Each moment, hour and day is a gift from God. The choice is yours. Will you squander or treasure?
a pastors ponderings 