Time

January 16, 2018

The heat was sweltering up in the balcony that summer morning. I don’t think air conditioning had yet been invented; if it had, it hadn’t arrived at the Westside Baptist Church where I was attending the Vacation Bible School. But it’s not the heat I remember most; it was the lesson. Visuals always help nail things down in our minds, and this was no exception. It was a simpler time; kids today wouldn’t be impressed with the wooden clocks we punched out of the pre-stamped luan plywood. All painted up, they were quite impressive crafts, at least to us kids. Each one bore an inscription which we dutifully painted in bright colors: “My times are in Thy hand.” It’s a quote from Psalm 31:15. The rest of the verse is a prayer for deliverance from enemies, which probably wasn’t too applicable back then. I’m not sure this eleven year old kid from the suburbs had too many enemies to worry about.

The entire week’s lessons centered around time. Later on, we memorized Ephesians 5:16, “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” All this was from the old Authorized Version, the only Bible we knew existed back then, apart from the Revised Standard Version, which we were taught was not the “real” Word of God. Elizabethan English can be a bit daunting for people, but I grew up on the rich, sonorous phrases of the revered King James Version, and that is what we memorized. I like many of the modern translations, but when I’m trying to remember a verse, I think in King James. But I digress.

Today’s been busy from start to finish, filled with people and activity. There’s been no downtime whatsoever, but it’s all good. When we know our times are in God’s hand, the pressure of the calendar or clock recedes to its proper place—IF we make sure we are redeeming the time, i.e. exchanging it for that which is worthwhile. When I was a kid, my mother used to save S&H Green Stamps. She would get them every time she went grocery shopping. Spend a certain amount of money, and get a corresponding number of stamps which then got pasted in books. Save enough of them, and they could be redeemed for all sorts of items, from pots and pans to entire dinner sets. The stamps were redeemed—exchanged for something of value. 

The hours, minutes, and seconds of this day I exchanged for conversations with people I value. I think the exchange was worth it, and I leave it with gratitude in God‘s capable hands.