In a telephone conversation with my daddy this week we entered into discussion regarding various things in life.  As we talked, I told him about a certain plan that I made some time ago about my future and what I had hoped to do when I turn sixty.  As we continued our conversation I expressed to him doubts about that plan becoming reality since time has slipped by so quickly and my sixtieth birthday will arrive before the end of this year.  As an additional reminder of my status, I received a letter in the mail this week from the Social Security Administration with details about retirement and how much they estimate I will receive each month.  After all those years of work, it looks like I will be put out to pasture with short grazing!

As I conversed with a preacher friend earlier today, we acknowledged the fast pace at which we live.  He brought up the fact that it is not only we older people who are affected by the high demands of life that makes months seems to fly by rapidly, but children are impacted by it too.  For young people who are in school and also involved in sports and other activities, it is not unusual for many of their days to stretch out for more than twelve hours.  While the dedication and discipline required to be a part of such activities is commendable, a good understanding of what is of lasting value needs to be acquired as well.

Perhaps many of us need to look at our priorities and see if we are placing unnecessary pressure on ourselves.  We need to also be careful that we are not planning time for everything else and leaving no time to nurture our spiritual well being.  Every one of us would do well to take opportunity to examine how much time, energy, and effort that we are willing to put in activities of this temporary life while giving only the leftovers to things related to the eternal Kingdom of God.  Matthew 6:33 records a powerful reminder for God’s people to stop worrying about temporary things that we have no control over so that we can better focus on the things of God:  “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (New International Version).

There is no doubt that we live in a world that is accelerating ahead at an ever increasing speed.  We probably cannot do much to slow down that overall pace, but we can choose to refuse to invite the pressures of this life to be our driving force.   And we can choose to refuse to allow obtaining earthly riches to be our highest goal in life.  Christ provides these words to help us take a serious look at what we are doing with the time that the Lord has allotted us on earth:  “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-20).

We are willing to invest the most energy and effort into what is of greatest importance to us.  The Lord stated in Matthew 6:21, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”   That brings to mind several questions that we would do well to ask ourselves frequently:  What do we see when we pause and take a look at what we did with our day?  How much did we feed our spiritual needs compared to what we poured into our human interests?  And when we get to the end of our physical lives, what will we have accomplished that will be eternal in value?

Time flies whether we are having fun or not, and we live in an accelerated world that we cannot control.  But we can choose to lay down a few things and take time with God.