The Value of Time

              Our son, Rick, gave us a grandfather clock in appreciation for supporting his way to a degree from Purdue University.  The clock stands in our dining room and chimes every fifteen minutes, one for the hour and then every quarter of an hour.  One day, this past week, the house was empty and the clock’s chiming seemed extra loud.  On the wall, next to this clock hang baby pictures of our eight grandchildren.  As I stood looking at the pictures, it struck me how much time has passed.  These babies have all grown into adults; they have homes and families of their own now.  Then the clock chimes announced the passing of another quarter hour, reminding me of how much time has gone from my own life, and I found myself musing about the fleeting value of time.

              I share with you a couple of thoughts about time.  Unfortunately, the writer of this first example is not known.  I wish I could share the author’s name also.

To Realize the Value of Time

                                           To realize the value of one year:

                                                          Ask a student who has failed a final exam

                                           To realize the value of one month:

                                                          Ask a mother who have given birth to a premature baby

                                           To realize the value of one week:

                                                          Ask an editor of a newspaper

                                           To realize the value of one hour:

                                                          Ask the lovers who are waiting to meet

                                           To realize the value of one minute

                                                          Ask the person who has missed the train, bus or plane

                                           To realize the value of one second

                                                                        Ask a person who have survived an accident

                                           To realize the value of one millisecond

                                                          As the person who has won a silver medal in the Olympics

              What would you do if your bank credited your account every morning with $86,000.00, but every night canceled whatever you failed to use during the day?  You would draw out every cent, wouldn’t you?  You have such a bank.  Every morning God credits your account with 86,000 seconds.  Every night whatever you fail to use becomes canceled.  It carries no balance; it allows no overdrafts.

              We cannot buy time and we cannot save it. We can only spend it.  If we don’t spend it well, we have wasted it.  Yesterday is a canceled check.  Tomorrow is a promissory note.  Today is all the “cash” we have.  Let’s spend it wisely.  (By the way, I have learned there are 31,536,000 seconds in a year.)

              Interesting thoughts, wouldn’t you say?  I share them with you to remind myself as well as those who read this that time does not wait on us.  Thus we are challenged every day to make the best of every moment.  I find myself at the end of some days wondering, did I accomplish anything today?  Did I do or say anything worthwhile to make our world a bit better for those whom my life touches?  Each day I ask God to give me the wisdom and grace to spend my time wisely and well.  I have no doubt that you, my reader, to the same thing.