The Gift of Time

Last week I had finals for the fall college semester.  It’s always hard for me to adjust to life after finals – I realize just how much extra time I seem to have when I don’t have to drive back and forth to the college, sit in classes, or study.  Since I think I have so much extra time on my hands, I start agreeing to go places and do things.  Historically, I’m more likely to go along with some crazy plan right after finals than at any other time of the year.  Crazy plans like working an out-of-town conference, spontaneously going to California for a week, or going out to a theater until 2:00 am to watch a new movie that I don’t even particularly like with one of my best friends. Before I know it, my once-luxurious sounding break gets so full that I’m actually glad to get back into class.

Time is one of the most precious gifts that God gives us.  Every breath that I take is only by the grace of God.  Really and honestly, I don’t deserve to be alive today – I most certainly don’t deserve to live such an incredibly blessed life either.  My time really isn’t mine, rather, God has given each of us time to use for His glory and we will all some day be held accountable for how we used “our” time.

One of the things that people try to bring up against the Bible is millions of years worth of time that they think things like distant starlight “proves”.  However, a big mistake that many people make when they bring up the question of distant starlight is that they misunderstand the physics of time.  Time does not travel at the same rate everywhere in the universe.  In fact, time (just like everything else in our universe) was created by God.  An atheist once asked me, “who created God?”, so I tried to explain to him that God does not have a beginning or an end – He is not bound by time because He created time!

Several years ago, I used to wonder why God leaves Christians here on earth for so long.  Life sometimes gets rough down here.  He hasn’t forgotten His promise to come for us, has He?   Would He let us suffer on earth without a good reason?  No,  God gives us each moment we live on earth for a reason, whether or not we understand it at the time (or ever).  Life is too short and fragile to waste, so we must use our time wisely.  At the same time (no pun intended), life is too long to take too seriously and go through without enjoying the little things.  God has a sense of humor, as I know  from all of the funny things He does in my life.  He wants us both to use our time for His glory and enjoy it!

This is a song that I’ve enjoyed about life and time.  I hope you enjoy it too!