Time and time again and again ...

I have heard many people comment on how swiftly the days are flying by. "It was just Christmas, are we in March already?!" One of my students exclaimed two weeks ago. Two turns in the morning and it's ten o'clock. The next time you check your watch it's 2 P.M and if you're not careful you're up till midnight because the hours are just zipping by. We still count twenty-four hours in a day but the days are definitely shorter. The question is how and why?

In describing the conditions that will prevail at the end of time, Jesus said to his disciples, "And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" (Matt. 24:22. KJV). "Those days" of which Christ spoke are the days leading to the end of time, the time when "ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars" (Matt. 24:6 KJV). In addition to wars, the chapter details  all that would characterise the end of time. Every condition that Jesus described in Matthew 24 is glaring in the world today.  In addition, the days have been shortened according to His words so it logically follows that we are at the end of time. As Jesus said, no one, except the Father, knows the day and the hour but all the signs are there that indicate clearly that we ought to be ready for the coming of Christ. If we accept the significance of the shortened days we should consider closely how we spend our time and how we respond to what is clearly the fulfillment of God's word.

Rather than complain about how the days are flying by and how little you  get done in a day, take the time to ponder the significance of these shortened days and prepare yourself. Watch how you spend your time. In spite of the shortened days, we are still guilty of wasting time on pursuits that have no eternal significance or which would hamper our preparation for Christ's return. Surely, we cannot afford to squander our time with idleness. We must hasten to be ready because "in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh" (vs 44).


The following is a humourous poem but there is a message in it which I hope you find and accept:

Time is a wayward child

Time is a wayward child
he never does as he is told
but crawls when he should
move with lighning speed
or rather races through the corridors of responsibility
overturning schedules, kicking down punctuality
and stops ever so often
to laugh racously
at the dismay his guardians show.
He grabs pencils and by moonlight
draws lines and circles
where no marks should go.
There is no end to his misdeeds.
His pranks the Amazon would clean
if records were kept on paper still.
He dances over sacred ground
twisting and turning everywhere.
He stomps on treasured memories
and tiptoes on forgetfulness.
No strategy would curb his ways.
Treats and threats are futile here
So, befriend Faith
Get linked in with Grace
'cause time is a wayward child
He never does what he is told
but mocks us all till we are cold.
               
                      - Desryn Jones-Collins