As I reflect on the passing of another year and look forward to the year ahead, I become more conscious of the passage of time. In our youth we often think we are indestructible and will always have all the time we need. As we age we seem to focus more on how quickly time zooms along. I once had a deacon tell me he seemed to have a birthday each week after turning 65. While I have yet to hit that number I must admit that the calendar does seem to be increasing in speed.
Bank accounts and society structures measure us at different levels but there is one measure that places us all on equal ground, levels the scale for everyone and gives us all equal opportunity. That equalizing measure is time. It does not matter how wealthy, strong, intelligent or powerful one may be we all have the same amount of time. Neither Bill Gates nor Oprah has any more minutes in their hour than you or me. However, the difference often lies in what someone does with this equal resource. Some make the most of each moment while others waste precious time with bad habits, poor decisions, and poor time management. I have a poster of an African proverb in my office that reminds me to make the most of each moment entitled ‘Every Morning in Africa’. It says; “Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It does not matter if you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better be running.”
This is one of my reminders that each day I wake with life I must set myself with purpose to make the most of each moment. There is not a moment to waste being lazy, angry, selfish, upset, or simply wasting time due to poor time management or repeating bad decisions. Each moment is not to be taken for granted. The next moment or breath is never promised. One does not know how long one has to live. So we are left with an interesting situation. While we do not know how much time we will have in our life span, we all have the same amount of time that is given in equal measure each day. Time is equal for everyone in that sense and it is a resource that is not retrievable once spent. It can only be wasted or used wisely. Therefore, since I (and you) have just as much of this precious resource as the most powerful and wealthy person on the planet each day we are alive and since it is not something we can store or retrieve once it is spent it just makes sense to spend or invest it wisely.
That is why God tells us to do that very thing. Ephesians 5:15-16 says “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit could have used either of two common Greek words for time: chronos or kairos. Chronos refers to time in general or clock time. It is the root word for chronological. Kairos refers to a predetermined, specific amount of time. It is measured, allocated and fixed. The Holy Spirit led Paul to use kairos.
That intentional word choice by God is huge. It reminds us that we have a specific amount of time given by God on earth. While He knows the measure of our days we do not. We need to make the most of each moment. I have been with people in their last moments on earth. No one has said, “I wish I had more time for my job or hobby”. Rather, people are comforted in their last moments when they have love with their family, friends and God. So, it makes sense to use every moment to love God and others as much as possible. My dad had a plaque on his desk that read, “For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” It was a reminder to get over things and make the most of each moment in a positive joyful manner. The clock is ticking even now. How are you spending your seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, years or life? What are you doing with your time?
