Have you ever tried to eat a clock? It’s very time consuming, or at least so I am told – I cannot say that I have ever tried it myself. Yet I am sure that if given the opportunity, it would take a long while to consume all the parts of a clock. Dr. Seuss once wrote, “How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?” Times are a-flying! Time was flying by for Dr. Seuss, and times are flying to this day for me, and most likely for you and potentially even Zoboomafoo (may he rest in peace).
I have had that sense of “not enough hours in the day” to fulfill all of the tasks at hand. With the Christmas season passing, work, and a new semester beginning along with all sorts of family events I have figured if only I had more time, I could complete all of the things I need to… in a timely manner. But lately, all things have appeared un-timely. For instance, once upon a time I forgot to clean my fish’s tank and as time elapsed, my fish of TWO years is now presently, fatally dying from a disease that Google tells me is caused by dirty water…but I’m trying to not get too deep here… I’m also reminded of a college professor once telling the class that when asked how one is doing, the response “busy” does not and cannot really make sense. This is because everyone has the same amount of time in a given day, and chooses to spend it differently. How I decide to fill my time creates the “busy” feel, but we all have the same amount of time in a day.
This concept we’ve been referring to as time is defined by the reliable source of Wikipedia as, “a measure in which events can be ordered from the past through the present into the future…” Yup, that pretty much gives us the basic understanding of “time”, but James 4:14 hits the bulls-eye of a great definition of time, and what it means for me and maybe you, but definitely not Zoboomafoo. “Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (James 4:14, ESV). James 4:14 certainly hit the mark for me as I am beginning preparations for an 11 month journey around the world. There are lots and lots of things to do, and September 2015(the trip’s launch date) is not too far off. In addition, I do not know what this journey will bring, and James reminds me that even though I may not know what’s going down tomorrow – I definitely have an in with the one who does. As a new semester of school begins, support letters are sent out, and preparations for summer and fall are made, I am reminded to be grateful for the time I do have, and to make the most of each passing hour.
If I’m a mist…I definitely want to be as wet of a little mist as I can be in order to moisten those around me.
Clocks will keep on ticking and time will keep on passing, so why not jump in and join in on what God is doing around the world? It could be in your neighbourhood, at school, at home, or on the bus…(It could even be at the zoo while hanging with the lonely Lemurs who are all missing Zoboomafoo.) The way time is used varies from person to person, and is a part of what makes each individual unique.
The truth is friends…
There’s no time to waste.
(So how will we use our mists this year?)
