Don’t forget to set your clocks back an hour Saturday night! The hour you lost in the spring you get back in the fall. It seems like a real gain…but it isn’t. No matter how you label the hours, there is only so much time. Twenty-four hours in a day, seven days in a week, 52 weeks in a year, and only so many years in a life.
It would be nice, though, wouldn’t it, if we could really gain an hour or two along the way. I’ve been doing funerals in Cook County for 20 years. “I’m glad they’re gone; it was time for them to go; I’d spent enough time with them,” said no loved one ever.
More time than I can count I’ve heard someone walking away from a graveside tearfully whisper these words, “I wish I could have had a little more time, just an hour more.”
No, we can play with the labels on the hours we have, but gaining more hours than there are we cannot. So what can we do? Moses, that ancient prophet and friend of God, answered the question like this: “The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is toil and trouble; they are soon gone and we fly away. So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:10,12). Because our time is limited, “Teach us to number our days,” he says. Teach us to be mindful of the short time we have and make the most of it is his prayer and the answer to our question.
But that answer raises another question. How? How do we make the most of our days, especially when we realize we cannot add a single hour to the length of them? Would you indulge an answer from me? It you truly want to make the most of the days you have, pursue peace. Pursue peace.
First, pursue peace with God. God says no one is righteous, not even one. God says that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That means that every single one of us stands at odd with God’s plan and purpose for us and needs to make peace with Him. Thankfully, God makes making peace with him easy. God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross to remove the obstacles that prevent us from making peace with God and God from extending peace to us. Jesus opens the door to peace with God and the only “entrance fee” to get in the door is trust. Faith. Believing that this is God’s way to peace and it is open to you. Pursue peace with God.
Second, in order to make the most of the time you have, pursue peace with yourself. Once we make peace with God and our sins are forgiven, we realize that we are infinitely, unconditionally loved. Love considers you, not what you’ve done or where you’ve been or how you turned out. Love considers you, the real person that you are, and Love loves you! You are loved by the One who created you and redeemed you, so go ahead and let go of the past, let go of the pain, let go of the fear, let go of regret, let go of remorse, let go of guilt, and let yourself be loved. Pursue peace with yourself as one who has made peace with God.
Finally, pursue peace with people. Some people will make this easy. Some, because they are not at peace themselves will make this hard. But as much as it lies within you, make peace with people. If you need to forgive, forgive. If you need to apologize and seek forgiveness, don’t wait. Do it now. So much pain and hurt and need in our world would disappear in an instant if only we would pursue true peace with one another through humility and self-sacrifice. Pursue peace with others as one who has made peace with God and with him/herself.
We only have so much time. But we can make the most of that time pursuing peace with God, with ourselves, and with others.
That’s the Good News.
Each week a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This week our contributor is Pastor Dale McIntire who has served as pastor of the Cornerstone Community Church in Grand Marais since April of 1995.
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