Lesson 23 - Time

4 "Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. 5 You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath. "Selah"(Psalm 39:4-5, NIV)

 In today's world, all we do is rush. Rush to work, rush to class, rush to a meeting, rush to workout, rush to go to church, rush to leave, rush to eat. We don't slow down, we don't stop to think. I rush thinking that I am making my life "time well spent". I feel that if I read the Bible, go to church, and pray I am making it easier for me to get to Heaven. When I study ahead I feel like I will get higher grades to get a better job with more money and have a better life. As the pastor at church today said, this is a but a point on a line of eternity. What is a point in comparison to a line though? Well, the definitions are as follows:

Line: A geometrical object that is straight, infinitely long and infinitely thin. Its location is defined by two or more points on the line whose coordinates are known. (LINK)

Point: A precise location or place on a plane. Usually represented by a dot. (LINK)

 So, if a line goes on forever, and we can't see or understand forever, then our lives are nothing, right? Wrong. Even if we cannot "fathom" what eternity is, we are still meant to live in a way that we are thinking about eternity. To live for the relationship we have with God, not to live for a ticket to Heaven. If we live for the relationship we have with Him instead of rushing through life trying to get what we feel is important done, our lives would be so much better. Picture this:

You wake up in the morning feeling groggy from the lack of sleep you got the night before because of you ________(Insert your reason here). You do your normal daily routine and leave for the day. You get stuck in traffic and are yelling because the only reason people are slowing down is to gawk at a motorist who had a flat tire. You then proceed to gawk yourself. After your commute, you get to _____(insert place you needed to be first). Your day goes by slow as you watch the clock tick down until it is time to go to destination 2,3,4,etc. Once the monotony of life is complete you spend the next couple of hours at home looking at Facebook, watching t.v, or ____(insert other random task). Once this has bored you, you find a reason to get out of the house. You then go to/do ______(insert reason to leave house). You get tired of this as well, or you get so drunk you can't stand it and return to your home. You do your nightly routine and prepare to do it all over again tomorrow. However, you can't sleep because you have to much on your mind. You get frustrated about the life that you wish you could have, but you know you can't attain.

Does this sound familiar, I know it does for me. But what if it went like this instead.

You wake up in the morning feeling refreshed from the relaxing sleep you got the night before because of you went to bed at a decent hour. You do your normal daily routine and praise God for the day that He has blessed you with, pray, and leave for the day. You get stuck in traffic and, because you left a bit early this morning because you had a great night sleep, you find that a fellow motorist has a flat tire. You then proceed pull over and help the fellow motorist change their tire and continue on with your day. After your commute, you get to _____(insert place you needed to be first). Your day goes by quickly as you work diligently until it is time to go to destination 2,3,4,etc. Once normal day has passed, your spend the next couple of hours reading God's word and praying intimately with Him. Once you have finished your study in God's word, you feel an urge to get out of the house. You then begin to reflect on your study of the Bible from earlier and begin to tell others about what you have learned. If they don't want to hear it, you simply show that you aren't going to push them and just have a relaxing conversation about the weather and the beauty of nature.You return home after your outing and decide to pray for the person that you just spoke with. You do your nightly routine and fall asleep peacefully.The next day, on your way to your first destination, you get a flat tire. However, low and behold, the person that you spoke with last night and the person you prayed for comes up to help you. They tell you that they thought about what you said about God and looked some of the passages up online. They were really touched by your respect to not push an issue and your conversation. They said they would love to talk to you about God sometime over coffee and you exchange numbers. You proceed on with your day once your tire is fixed and you spend the rest of the day praising God that He could use you to let someone else know Him.


Which one sounds like a better life? I think the second one does. If you understand that your life is but a breathe, a point on a line of eternity, then you will understand that what you have planned for your life to "climb the ladder" will only happen if God wants to uses your relationship with Him to help another that can only be touched if you do so. This life isn't about us, it is about God. Heaven isn't about us, it is about God. Love isn't about us, it is about others and God. Nothing should be about self... Rushing is only about self... We shouldn't rush, it will only kill you faster.
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11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. (Ecclesiates 3:11, NIV)

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 "I'm In A Hurry (And I Don't Know Why)" - Alabama

 I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Don't know why I have to drive so fast
My car has nothing to prove
It's not new
But it'll do zero to sixty in five point two

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Can't be late, I leave in plenty of time
Shakin' hands with the clock
I can't stop
I'm on a roll and I'm ready to rock

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why

Oh, I hear a voice
That says I'm running behind
Better pick up my pace
It's a race and there ain't no room for someone in second place

I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why