A Year of Time (Steven B. Cloud)
As we look into year - we look at a block of time. We see 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,760
hours, 525,600 minutes, 31,536,000 seconds. And all is a gift from God. We have
done nothing to deserve it, earn it, or purchased it. Like the air we breathe,
time comes to us as a part of life.
The gift of time is not ours alone. It is given equally
to each person. Rich and poor, educated and ignorant, strong and weak—every
man, woman and child has the same twenty-four hours every day.
Another important thing about time is that you cannot
stop it. There is no way to slow it down, turn it off, or adjust it. Time
marches on.
And you cannot bring back time. Once it is gone, it is
gone. Yesterday is lost forever. If yesterday is lost, tomorrow is uncertain.
We may look ahead at a full year’s block of time, but we really have no
guarantee that we will experience any of it.
Obviously, time is one of our most precious possessions.
We can waste it. We can worry over it. We can spend it on ourselves. Or, as
good stewards, we can invest it in the kingdom of God.
The new year is full of time. As the seconds tick away,
will you be tossing time out the window, or will you make every minute count?
This is a time for reflection as well as celebration.
As you look back on the past year and all that has taken place in your life.
Remember each experience for the good that has come of it and for the knowledge you have gained.
Remember the efforts you have made and the goals you have reached.
Remember the love you have shared and the happiness you have brought.
Remember the laughter, the joy, the hard work, and the tears.
And as you reflect on the past year, also be thinking of the new one to come.
