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Some time ago I was listening to a lecture in which the professor, Dr. Regis Martin, explored the mystery of this thing we call "time." It was an absolutely fascinating 45 minutes or so, and I just thought I'd share some of the reflections he shared along with a few of my takeaways.
Time can be seemingly our biggest enemy, can't it? I mean most of our modern technology seems to have been created for the primary purpose of getting us some time back. But does it work? Now that we have smartphones, tablets, digital calendars synced everywhere we go, and GPS on every device we own, do we really have MORE time? I know I don't. It's funny, the more feverishly I try to save time, the faster it seems to slip away.
But I think the reason why this is true is right in front of us. It's because time IS what it is. It isn't something we can fashion into something else or control in some way. It's a creature. God made time, and God doesn't make junk. So time IS GOOD. Wow... I can't believe I just typed that because usually I treat time like it's my ultimate arch-nemesis! It is through time, though, that we learn to live, to bear suffering, and to love. God himself plunged wholeheartedly into time itself through the incarnation. Christ swims through the river of time from the moment of his conception through his crucifixion, descent into the dead, and his ultimate ascension to the right hand of the Father. He has, in a sense, perfected time itself by touching each corner of it with his blessed presence. What does that mean for you and me? Maybe we shouldn't be in such a rush to skip a step all of the time. Maybe we should slow down a bit, "stop and smell the roses" and try harder to focus on the moment at hand. Perhaps we'll start to catch a more frequent glimpse of Christ's face in the people and circumstances around us, no matter who or what they are. Maybe then we will learn to live fully the life we have been freely given through no merit of our own in thanksgiving and with hope.
