Borrowed Time

The clock of life is wound but once, And no man has the power to tell just when the hands will stop, At late or early hour. Now is the only time we own; Love life, toil with a will; Do not wait until tomorrow, For the clock may then be still.” (Robert H. Smith)

We are all living on borrowed time. Some realize this, but the rest of us go on living as if we have all the time in the world.

As I sit here and look out our cabin window, the edge of the woods is speaking to me. Tall cedar trees form the divider between grass and dark woods. They have grown straight up, and the branches don’t begin until 2/3 of the way to the top. The cedar trunks pushed and pushed until they reached sunlight. Isn’t this how our lives go?

Borrowed time… in my own life, it seems as though time has flown so quickly. My children have children of their own, and my husband and I have come to the point where we value the time we have left together. God has wound the clock of our lives, and only He knows when time will stop. He could have called us home already. This is our second chance to live.

Like those cedar trees, I have pushed and pushed through to the sunlight. In the process, I know I missed valuable opportunities to show His love. I waste so much time. It has to change somehow.

My heart’s desire is to see people’s lives changed through Christ. I want to see people saved from addiction, from a life of hopelessness. I also want to love like He loves… my family, my church, my city. I want to stretch my branches before time is stopped.

Now is the only time we own.

If we truly realized the depth of our borrowed time, would we live differently? Nothing is wasted. Every minute of every day has a purpose, in God’s eyes. It is another chance for us to love, to live, and to help others do the same. We are not promised a set amount of time. If we think we are, we are nothing but fools.

Second, third, fourth chances is what we live in recovery. Many of you know that you should have died, but God has let you live. Overdoses, accidents, traumas, heart attacks- so many reasons why. Living on borrowed time requires us to be more aware. Keeping our eyes open, we act differently, think more clearly. We let our branches grow now, rather than waiting until we reach the top.

Do not wait until tomorrow.

What have you done today? How have you used time? I am loving more deeply and living with purpose. Still, I waste too much of this borrowed time.

Take full advantage of every day as you spend your life for His purposes. Ephesians 5:16 TPT