Our Journey in Time

 

“Our journey in time”. That phrase has provided considerable food for thought lately. Think about it. Prior to conception, we experienced no time. After death, there is no time, or at least as we understand it now. That thought can make a person feel either extraordinarily special or totally inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

We tend to think of time as endless. But is it? It isn’t endless for any of us. We have a certain number of revolutions around the sun laid out and no more. Is time infinite? Or perhaps it is the lack of time that is beyond our understanding. We can only measure that which we experience. We have memories and history that we can  recall from the past, but we can’t change those things. And we hope for a future… but it comes with no guarantees.

So what exactly is “our journey in time”? Is it where we go? Or what do we do? Or how long we live? It’s a conundrum for the most part. Fascinated by the idea of time travel, it would be interesting to see the land as it was before man arrived, to experience all of its natural rawness, or perhaps soak in the perils of the pioneers. Interestingly, my desire to go forward in time isn’t as enticing as the past. Probably because I can’t envision the future. While the past is documented, the future is unknown.

My “journey in time” has been seventy-two years up to this point. Had I realized the trip would be so short, I would have striven for more. I would have filled my life with things that matter early on. Things like faith, family, education, travel, adventure, even fun. Life is much too short for nothing but work. And in the end, most accomplishments will disappear and be forgotten.

Years ago, God’s timing was explained to me as a parade. I can only see what is in front of me. There are memories of what has already passed by, but I can not foresee what is coming. God, on the other hand, views the it from a vantage point high above the parade. He sees it in its entirety… beginning, middle, and end, all in one fell swoop. He operates outside of time. I actually find a great deal of comfort in that.

My remaining time is pocked with fragility. Bodies decay, minds wander, life becomes difficult with the onset of disease and infirmity. Perhaps that is why there is a desire with the elderly for the hourglass to run down and time on this earth to cease. To be free of the constraints that hold us and find a freedom we never knew, or could have possibly understood, looks heavenly.

It is often said that life is short. It’s far too short to measure in any human way. Time on this earth is not even a nano-second in the entirety of the universe. And yet, somehow I was created to make a difference. Will that difference change the world, probably not. But things can change in this “moment of time” that I have been blessed with. Will I create artful masterpieces, or build a business empire, or be the first to leave this planet? Maybe… or maybe not. But perhaps my life will have an impact on someone else. Feeling deeply, loving greatly, sharing profusely without considering the cost, lifting others out of the mire, or maybe providing a guiding light for those who are just now entering into their “moment in time” is a calling. It is a big job, one we have all been given from the day of conception.

How have you spent your “moment in time”? What have you accomplished on your journey? Every day is an opportunity to change your world! Do it! You were born for a time such as this! (Esther 4:14) Make your “journey in time” count!

Just Writin’ on the River Road