Hey Pal, Have You Got the Time?
Posted by Rev. Dr. Lance Giuffrida on 08/13/2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Do you remember how hot it can get in the summer? Or what its like waiting for a spring thaw while daydreaming about sun bathing and hot days at the beach—always knowing the time will come when we look forward to the cooler days of autumn, just as we are growing impatient for the brighter days of June. And that is how it should be. There is a rhythm and a pattern to the time of our life, and we know it, even if we no longer are bound to the seasons.
For example, what would you answer if I asked, what time is it? Your response would depend upon the kind of watch you wear. If you are wearing an analog watch, you might say something like, it’s 10:45. Or, if you are really dated, like me, you might insist on saying it’s “a quarter of ten,” and run the risk of having your children stare at you like there is a fish sticking out of your ear. If you are wearing a digital watch you probably know the time to the precise second, and what a joy that is! The query, what time do you have, becomes an exercise in quartz crystal physics, as four or five people will pipe up with their own answer to a simple question. I have 10:44; or, I have 10:44 and 13 seconds; and so on.
Still, time is more slippery than that. If we have an appointment to keep, and we know the one with whom we are meeting is a digital obsessive, then “being late” becomes more important than the accuracy of my watch. But if we are truly honest, we don’t really care what time it is; what we want to know is am I late; or am I early; or, how much time do I have? And that, as they say, is the $64,000 question; and there is only one answer that really counts: you don’t have any time. Oh, we can mark time; and we can make time; but we don’t possess time. It isn’t ours and it never was; because all time is God’s time; each day is a gift and every breath is a grace. And the really good news is this: as Christians, we no longer need worry about time. Time no longer has dominion over us because Jesus has conquered both time and death. Because Jesus has risen, we are granted a lifetime now and an eternity when we leave this world. How much time do I have is no longer relevant. The only question we need answer is, how will I use the time I’ve been given? So, we can either use our time well or we can waste it.
I urge you, my friends. Use the time you have and use it well. Use the time you have to love the Lord your God; use it to love your family and friends; fill it with deeds of kindness and charity. Use the time you have to bless and use this gift of grace to bring grace into the lives of others. We are Easter Christians, and we are people of God’s new dawn! We have all the time in the world, because the God who created time has given us immortality and life! Knowing this, what could possibly prevent you? Go forth, and do good things.
Fr. Lance
Filed Under:
Syndicate