this morning a teammate shared a poem with me. i thought it was so appropriate considering it’s my birthday.
the poem is called time:
time never fails to take
too long…
or pass
too fast.
it drags on
for eternity…
or in a blink
it is past.
we always
want more.
we always
wish for less.
days are long,
years are fast.
weeks can
drag…
but months
fly by.
but God was
kind,
to give us time.
time, heals
time, grows.
time is a mystery
all it’s own.
time reveals
God to us.
it’s always
present.
it’s uncontrollable
unavoidable.
it speaks
it shows.
God,
who is outside
of time,
is very kind.
for any second
He gives,
at all.
i have realized that, like this poem insinuates, time is fleeting. we always want more time, but when we get more time, it’s too much time. time goes by too slow when we are in the hard seasons, and time goes by too fast when we are enjoying the time in which we are currently in.
my favorite line in this poem is “time reveals God to us”. wow, i love this. we get to look back on the time in our lives and reflect on what God has done. what God has taught us.
last year at this time, i was in a deep, dark downward spiral of depression. i was the closest i had ever been to planning my own suicide, taking my time into my own hands.
somehow, by the grace of God himself, i ended up throwing myself into a church and discovering new life in Christ. i wanted something new, so i started something new. a new church. new community. new routines. new adventure.
i was asked this morning what was the thing that i got most out of my 23rd year. my initial response, “Michael Jordan is king.” (because 23, ya know?)
but on a serious note, my lesson from year 23 was this: trust God with everything inside of you.
i had no idea what the heck was ahead of me in life when year 23 began, but i had to choose life. i knew i had to. i couldn’t disappoint people in my life by taking time into my own hands.
this year i chose to trust God because i simply didn’t know what else to do. i trusted Him in giving me uplifting community. i trusted Him in regaining joy in life. i trusted Him in the process of applying for the world race, for fundraising for the world race, and for beginning the world race. in everything and with everything, i trusted in my Father.
time changes people. never would i guess that this is where my life would be a year ago, but i wouldn’t change a thing. i know this is where God has me for His perfect plan and His perfect timing.
God has been revealed to me this past year in ways i could have never imagined.
this next year has a lot to live up to, and fortunately i serve a God who is more than capable of surpassing any and all expectations.
thank you for the birthday wishes, for the virtual hugs, and for every single prayer that has been lifted up over this last year.
i can’t express my love for each of you enough.
xoxo,
the nearly 24 year old – margaret
