Time Is Limited

Lost – Somewhere between sunrise and sunset-one golden hour encrusted with sixty silver minutes, each studded with sixty diamond seconds. No reward is offered. They are lost and gone forever.

I was thinking about how much or how little value we place on the time we are allotted. Time can seem to drag on or it can seem very fleeting depending on the circumstances of our day. I am always checking the weather forecast because it seems like my life revolves around the outside temperatures. It is late spring now and the garden has been tilled one time but we have had a lot of rainy days.  We are waiting for a few sunny days to dry the soil before the final rotatilling and then planting. In the winter, I am always checking the forecast to plan my driving  trips around snowy and icy roads. There are high wind warnings, ice and snow warnings, tornado warnings, etc….

When I consider the weather outside, I am considering the effect it will have on my day. I like to hang my clothes outside to dry so I have to know how many hours of sunlight I have to accomplish this process. Tomorrow I am going to pick up a side of beef for the freezer and it’s a 3 hour round trip. Rain will make it a longer trip and I have to add time accordingly. Now that the days are longer and we have more hours of sunlight I try and plan yard work time after dinner to squeeze in as much as I  can into the day. In the winter, it seems like we have less time because of the early darkness.

My friend used to call me the energizer bunny. She could not believe how much energy I had and how much I could accomplish in a day. I got up early in the morning and milked my goats. I usually had clothes on the line and some weeding done before my 7 children got up! I cooked and baked and took care of my children as well as doing bookkeeping for my husband’s business, everyday. Believe me those were the good old days! I do not have that kind of energy anymore.

We all are given the same 24 hours each day, no one gets more or less. Time is literally irreplaceable. When it’s gone it’s gone forever. It’s a sobering thought. I know I spend way too much time in unproductive ways throughout the day.  I know I need to be more conscious of those precious minutes slipping away that were spent fruitlessly on worrying and fretting about things. I can never regain those moments that could have been spent accomplishing something of eternal value. I remember a friend once said to me “do you want me to worry with you or pray with you?” It does me a world of good to reflect on those wise words.

We all have a predetermined amount of time allotted to us on this earth. We can’t shorten it or extend it but we can place value in each and every moment. We will be accountable to God for how we spent our time here and I want to be a good steward of the time He has provided to me. We can’t place time in inventory so let’s place more value on each and every moment! Remember,   it’s irreplaceable.