James 4:14- “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a while and then it vanishes.”
Life is transient and ever-moving. Never again can we replicate the moments we have experienced or are experiencing. Time marches on faster than we care to realize and moments pass before we know we are in them. The older I get, the more I realize the fleeting nature of time and as a rising college freshman, this concept has a new meaning in my life as I realize how quickly my childhood sped by. At the speed of light, time races. Before we know it, our yesterdays become yesteryears and our tomorrows become today.
As I sat on the beach with my grandparents this week, beautiful rays of colorful light appeared in the sky. Peaks of color reached across the dusky sky above the Atlantic Ocean with a rainbow-like glow. We hurried to capture this unusual sight with our phones and minutes after we did, the colors vanished into thin air as quickly as they had arrived. The sky soon ushered in the moon and stars, leaving no trace of the sight we beheld just moments before. And so it is with life. Moments pass and days wane. While so many of us chase after nothingness, the magnificent and miraculous occur just beyond our gaze. If we don’t act fast, we will miss it altogether.
Solomon’s wise words reflect this well:
“I have seen something else under the sun:
The race is not to the swift
Or the battle to the strong,
Nor does food come to the wise
Or wealth to the brilliant
Or favor to the learned;
But time and chance happen to them all.
Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come…” (Ecclesiastes 9:11-12)
Nothing can cushion our lives from the passing of time. We are but a “flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow, a wave tossed in the ocean…” (Casting Crowns). As humans, we are just as vulnerable to the passing of time as we are to the rising and falling of the tide. Not riches or wealth, safety or security, power or health, can slow down the speed at which the Earth rotates on its axis to give us a 24-hour day. The passing of time is inevitable, but our response to this natural phenomenon remains in our hands. J.R.R. Tolkien says,
“The greatest adventure is what lies ahead.
Today and tomorrow are yet to be said.
The chances, the changes, are all yours to make.
The mold of your life is in your hands to break.”
Because time is so precious, guard it wisely. Chase Him instead of squandering time away. Time flees and moments fade, but some things forever remain. “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8) Jesus Himself says, “Heaven and Earth will pass away, but my Words will never pass away.” (Matthew 24:35) I have heard it said that only 2 things last forever: God and our souls. Therefore, we must make a conscious decision to invest in what matters most and Who matters most.
So “don’t look back; you’re not going that way.” Choose to seek life and spread joy. Use your talents well and wisely. Live every day to the fullest, knowing each minute is a gift and tomorrow is never guaranteed. Make the most of each moment, love with all you have, and cherish every second with those you love.
Time marches on; don’t let it leave you behind.