Recently, I celebrated my sixtieth birthday. While I wouldn’t categorize myself as old, I admit (to myself mostly) that I am indeed getting older. It’s an interesting process, one that has to be experienced to be truly understood and appreciated. Perhaps the element that stands out the most with advancing age is time. In youth, time abounds and is plentiful, a never ending commodity one takes for granted. As the years tick by, though, time grows in value. The fundamental rule of economics is supply and demand. Well, I’d like more time on this planet, as would most of us. However, as we get older its supply dwindles. With each passing day, my time grows more valuable. I’ve become increasingly aware of just how limited and precious it is. Money was never a major concern to me the way it is to some people. This is especially true now. Knowing the average lifespan, examining my family history, there’s a good chance I might live another twenty years, Lord willing. But what if He isn’t willing? What if He has other plans for me?
Once I crossed the threshold and left my fifties behind, I began to take stock of my life, particularly from a Christian perspective. I’ll admit I’m a lackluster Christian. I’ve followed the script my entire life and coasted along. Growing up in the church and attending Christian schools, I learned about the Bible. After high school, I drifted away from church, but fortunately God didn’t let me drift too far. After entering the Navy and moving to Virginia, my wife and I began attending a church in our neighborhood, one that I frequently ran past during my daily run. In fact, I discovered it during my initial runs. One Sunday we decided to try it and have been there ever since (with the exception of a brief leave of absence). I served in the church as an elder, my wife volunteered in the nursery. Today, she runs the nursery. Over the years, I’ve participated in various activities at the church, but I was never really on fire for the Lord. I fell into temptation, drifted in my spiritual walk, and never made the church, or God for that matter, my top priority.
Just a few months ago, I developed a leadership program at work in which I discussed managing time and setting priorities. I thought about a quote from Billy Graham in which he said, “Give me five minutes with a person’s checkbook, and I’ll tell you where their heart is.” Ironically, I used this quote during training. It’s a great quote that rolls right off the tongue. However, upon deeper examination it makes a valid point - how someone spends their money tells you a lot about what matters to them - their priorities. Well, the same is true of time. How someone spends their time tells you more about them than how they spend their money. I thought about the disciples and the time in which they lived. Admittedly, I was envious of the simplicity that comprised their daily lives. The ubiquitous distractions of today’s modern world did not exist. No one had to worry about email, text messages, or social media. Time was spent with people, not playing video games or binging movies on one of many streaming platforms. Memories were made and captured in the mind, not in selfies. Money was spent on necessities, not luxuries. I imagine life moved much slower. And each moment was savored.
So, getting back to time, in the days and weeks since turning sixty, I’ve begun to think very intentionally about time - my time, my remaining time, that is - and what I intend to do with it. As readers of my blog know, I fell in love with skydiving several years ago. Despite breaking my ankle on a rough landing nearly two years ago, I am still drawn to it. One of my goals was to complete my A license and become a basic skydiver, something that I should have done by now had life (and perhaps God?) not intervened. Although I’ve done three tandem jumps since breaking my ankle, I haven’t jumped solo. Meaning I haven’t landed my own chute. I’ve been hesitant to do so based on my last solo experience. That hesitation has given me pause and time to think, particularly about how I spend both my time and money. The latter isn’t really my concern as much as the former. Time. Should I be spending my time pursuing such a goal? Certainly, there’s no harm in it, right? Even Christians have hobbies. As I considered this, I felt a nagging sense (or maybe the work of the Holy Spirit) to let it go. I ignored it for a while and made excuses not to jump - weather, family commitments, etc. The truth was I was convicted about spending the money and time pursuing something that had no value in God’s Kingdom. As much as I wanted to get back up in the air and complete the necessary jumps for my license, something told me to let it go.
In a previous post, I discussed biblical success. I won’t rehash that here except to state that the combination of biblical success and time has caused me to reprioritize my life. The folly of youth and time for frivolous pursuits has long since passed. In the waning years of my life, I realize I need to spend my time storing up treasures in heaven. And that can only be done by dedicating my time to God. To do that, God must be my priority, my focus, my reason for getting out of bed in the morning. To truly be Jesus’ disciples, we must be willing to give up everything and follow Him. We can’t do that if He isn’t a priority. Which made me consider my priorities. What were they? Skydiving was one; working out and health was another. Organizing my house - full of “stuff” I had accumulated during the past sixty years - maintaining it along with a host of odd projects was another. Often I’d get so caught up with the various projects on my to-do list that I never had time to focus on my priorities let alone God.
But all that changed in the weeks since my birthday. Funny how a number can change one’s perspective. My father once remarked, “Eventually, something’s going to kill you.” Of course, what he meant was no one lives forever. At some point, we will all leave this world. Considering his words, my age, and time, I realized it was time for me to make some changes in my life, to evaluate my priorities, and align them with God’s will. In short, I needed to become a better steward of my time. As much as it pained me to let it go, I abandoned my pursuit of skydiving. Perhaps I’ll do an occasional tandem jump. For now, though, it’s time to shift my focus to more important things. Additionally, working out is something I do to maintain health, not reach a specific training goal. Binging shows and watching movies has been replaced with studying my Bible, blogging, and writing. I’m seeking opportunities to volunteer, serve others, and share the Gospel. Spending time with family is paramount.
Time is the most valuable commodity, yet we tend to fritter it away never realizing we will one day deplete our allotted amount. That day could be today or tomorrow, or at some distant point in the future. Regardless of when it might be, it will come. There will be no further opportunities to serve God, no more moments with family, no time at all for anything. So, how are you spending your time? Spend it wisely!
Comments
Post a Comment