Time Change

"LORD, reveal to me the end of my life and the number of my days. Let me know how transitory I am. You, indeed, have made my days short in length, and my life span as nothing in Your sight. Yes, every mortal man is only a vapor. Certainly, man walks about like a mere shadow. Indeed, they frantically rush around in vain, gathering possessions without knowing who will get them. Now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in You." Psalm 39:4-7

The first few days after the time change are always an adventure for me, because I'm never quite sure what time it is. Last night, Brandon and I were watching TV together when, as if I were suffering from a bout of Tourettes, I very loudly and randomly shouted, "Hey! It's only 8:00!" I'd been an hour ahead for who knows how long, but then I looked at my cell phone (with automatically updated time for people like me) and realized I was off. Brandon (not-so-mini me) was just as surprised at the news. 

If you're one of those people who immediately changes all the clocks in the house, kudos. I'd like to say there's a good reason why I don't, but the truth is, I'm just lazy. I'll change the microwave clock the next time I'm standing at the microwave. Same goes for you, oven. Draw what conclusions you want about how much cooking I did this weekend. Now, two days after the fact, the alarm clock on my nightstand is the only clock in the house I have changed...and I didn't do that until Sunday night. Besides my blatant laziness in pressing buttons on a clock, with the fall time change they say the days are "shorter" because it gets dark earlier. Greatness. Just what a person nearing mid-life wants...shorter days (I hope you caught the sarcasm.)

Time is a funny thing. As I get closer to the day when Brandon graduates from high school, I realize more and more the value of it. And if I think on it too much, I can easily get overwhelmed. Here's what it comes down to - I don't want time to march on, but no matter what time the clocks in my house say it is, I can't stop it from happening. Psalm 39 reminds us that time is short, and there's only one way to make it count. I don't have to be overwhelmed by the shortness of life or the passing of time because, "Every mortal man is only a vapor", though true, isn't the point at all. Nope, the point comes in verse 7. "What do I wait for? My hope is in You."

Time management for Christ-followers isn't about organizing the minutes of your day, it's about living every moment with the right priority - Jesus. If my purpose is to know Him and to make Him known, then today matters...for eternity. If my purpose is something else, well then I might as well just camp out on that depressing vapor thing. Paul said it this way-

"Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise— making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So don't be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will  is." -Eph. 5:15-17

It's true, I'm not sure what time it is right now, but the thing is, it really doesn't matter. I'm just called to make the most of it. Life is short, and it's time for change.