Most families have a history of certain behaviors that were crucial to family peace. They were usually established and reinforced by heads of household and stemmed from their childhood experiences or lack there of. At our house, punctuality was a time honored tradition(no pun intended.). Both my parents, grandparents, most aunts and uncles had internal clocks that drove their ambitions for the day and a ton of time pieces, clocks, watches, etc. to monitor their progress… and everyone else’s toward this endeavor. Being on time was not praised but expected, it was never viewed as extra credit. Truth be known, if you weren’t actually 10 or 15 minutes early, in my tribe you were late. My father had a lecture regarding latecomers. It went a little like this—”People who are consistently late are thieves. They are stealing valuable time from others, because time, is a precious commodity and time should never be taken casually for granted.” So needless to say I grew up with an awareness of time and it’s passing and was encouraged to be mindful and not waste it.
This was reflected in how we related to each other as well. We did not usually go to bed with too much unresolved conflict though our bed covers nursed a host of hurt feelings at times. We always hugged and kissed when we left each other and always, always said “I love you” when hanging up the phone. We were far from perfect but by golly, we were on time. One of the rites of passage to maturity was to learn to tell time. One summer, while visiting my grandparents, my grandmother became frustrated with my youngest female grandchild antics of depending on others to tell me what time it was. She said, “you need to learn to tell time.” I responded by saying, “what should I tell it?”She laughed and said, “Tell it to stand still'” This became a joke we would share for years to come. But under her tutelage that summer, I learned to tell time. This was essential for survival, staying out of trouble and a general state of well being at the Phillips house.
Little did I know how God would use this framework of thinking about time to mature in my walk of faith with Him. Though it is valuable to be on time physically, it is all the more important to understand time spiritually. It is critical to grasp that God does not measure time the way I do. The scriptures tell me a thousand years is as a day to God. God is bigger than time and resides outside of it and is not limited by it. On the other hand, I am. God made me this way for my own good and for His glory. Learning to tell time with God is a lot like life at my house. It is essential for survival, can keep me out of trouble and can deliver a state of well being and peace that only God can provide.
After Jesus teaches us to pray, seeking Gods will and His coming kingdom, Jesus instructs us to ask God for “this day, Give us this day'” Not yesterday, not tomorrow, not last month or next week but this day, Right now in the present time. In 2020, I heard many folks coin the phrase that they are attempting to be “more present” in their life. If the pandemic has demonstrated anything it has reminded me of my own limited time on this planet and the lack of control I have over the future. Jesus told us over 2,000 years ago to be more present. It’s not a new idea. In Matthew in the sermon on the mount, He taught us that we should not worry about tomorrow because there was enough evil to deal with today. Further, He dispelled the idea that worry could change any outcome of future events, reminding us we are in the Father’s care. Jesus also told us a person who looks back isn’t fit for the kingdom. Yesterday is gone, Looking back will change nothing any more than worry will influence tomorrow. To be on time with God, I need to stay with mindset of “Todayness.”Not because God needs it but because God knows I need it. It is what is best for me.
Louie Giglio in a recent sermon on anxiety said,”we try to make a stress sandwich everyday. We take a slice of bread called yesterday’s regrets and the other slice of bread called tomorrows worry and place the meat of today in between and try and consume it” (paraphrased).
Impossible to digest, and this attempt at swallowing this time sandwich causes us to fall into fear and despair, heartbreak and hopelessness. It multiplies our stress and takes our focus off what God is blessing us with, directing us to or leading us away from in THIS DAY. God wants me to wholly grasp that all I have is today. Today I have the ability to choose, to love, to thank, restore, believe, trust, listen or wait. God is a right now God! He declares Today is the day of Salvation. Not yesterday or tomorrow. Being punctual with God means I take up this challenge and value both the quantity and quality of time, praying earnestly “Give me this day.”
When I pray this, I am declaring stewardship of Gods valuable gift He has entrusted me with. Time. The question remains what will I do with it? Will I let it slip by without setting things right that I am able to? Will I choose to sow peace or fan the fire of discord? Spend time in prayer fellowshipping with God and chatting with Him about my concerns or play the endless running tape through my mind of all the “what Ifs?”Will I nurse the wrath of yesterdays wrongs, savoring it for tomorrow’s revenge? God has given me the gift of free will that will determine the outcome more than I like to admit, about this day. God and my grandmother had this in common. Both wanted me to learn to tell time.
Its not by accident that I am sitting at my desk on 9/11 writing these words. If ever we knew that the difference one day could make in history it was that day. The course of life as we knew it took a different direction. People, families, cities, countries, a nation experiencing unspeakable loss and terror striking in the deepest part of human hearts. Today our nation remembers and pays tribute to the events of a most tragic day. We move forward from that course of events and the best we can do to honor all those lost is to rise to the challenge and ask God with our whole heart, “Give us this day”
and live it out for the one who gave it to us.
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