Time and forgetfulness

As I sat there, glancing out at the rain in the stillness of the early morning, I suddenly remembered that I had unfailingly forgotten to set my clock forward an hour.

As I sat there, glancing out at the rain in the stillness of the early morning, I suddenly remembered that I had unfailingly forgotten to set my clock forward an hour. So when I looked at the clock, which digitally and joyfully lit up red proclaiming it was eight o’ clock, it was in fact nine.  I detest having to reset all the clocks in my house twice a year and think that whoever came up with the idea of daylight savings time should be keelhauled, that is if a ship of considerable enough breadth can be located. 

Usually, the realization that I had forgotten this small, seemly insignificant fact and now would be late for church is not such an immense problem. The whole slipup meant I could just lie around in bed for a few more hours and enjoy a book, catch up on the news or finish a crossword, however, as the main speaker who was suppose to be standing behind the pulpit in an hour, I was immediately gripped with fear. 

Forgetting to do some things like take out the trash, make my bed or squirt WD-40 on the bathroom door hinges does not usually make me panic and run for the trashcan but when a hundred or so people are sitting in a church somewhere staring blankly at the front wall…well, you get the idea. 

I still had time to get there, if I could just change into my clothes as fast as Superman. Quickly, while shoving my leg into my trousers, I began to go over the calculations in my head; five minutes to dress, three minutes to brush my hair and teeth allowing twenty-five minutes to drive to church just as the musicians and singers were finishing up with worship. 

Around the same time my blood pressure was beginning to subside I realized my lovely wife had straightened up the house and was now punishing me for being a slob by hiding my sermon notes somewhere in the house.

Reworking my calculations I discovered that I had not anticipated this latest turn of events allotting extra time to complete a search and rescue mission for my missing papers. As I frantically hunted for my notes I managed to step on the cat’s tail, bump into the dog and run into the corner of a poorly positioned living room coffee table. 

As I stood there throbbing with pain, half dressed, I thought that if the daylight savings time guy or girl was still alive and could be found I might have to haul them over the keel twice. 

Forgetfulness is no laughing matter, especially when it comes to leaving a pan on the stove with hot oil. Next on the list would be forgetting to pick someone up from somewhere, which comes in at a close third. But the absolute worst thing to forget about is spending time with God.

Life today is so busy that at lunch time we often either hastily pull in for fast food or skip it altogether. We have so many diversions to distract us that many times we neglect to pray, read our bibles or attend a weekly study. Spending time with our Creator has unfortunately fallen to the bottom of our lists and if you are anything like me then you do not even have a bottom to your list. 

King Solomon once wrote, “Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” 

Our days here on earth are numbered and there are only so many breaths we will take in. Therefore, we should make the most of our time for the years are destructive and corrosive. Too many of us continue to throw caution to the winds of time, blatantly ignoring the warnings God continually puts in front of us. 

He has set us in this world for only a short time. We are merely pilgrims passing through on our way to eternity. Our lives are like vapor which is seen one moment then gone the next. Where we will spend eternity depends on what we do with our time we spend with our Creator. Putting God first in our lives, making time with Him a priority is a great place to start.

 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever should believe in Him would not perish but have everlasting life.” 

So while forgetting to set the clock forward might make you late for an appointment, forgetting about God and His Son Jesus Christ will make you miss eternity.