Last night I dreamed I was living inside my last day of life. I hasten to point out that I’ve never been able to choreograph my dreams, let alone remember them. I’ll further add, I don’t plan on dying anytime soon. As I consider it further, I believe this dream contains more insight than death and its reality. This dream reminded me of the gravity and value of time. Time is one of the most valuable resources in life itself because of how finite and irreplaceable it is. 

Once a moment passes, it can never be retrieved, making time more precious than money or any material possession. How we use time directly impacts what we can achieve. There is what we prefer to do, and there is what we should do. At times we are unable to differentiate the two. 

Have you ever passed on something that wasn’t pressing, but important? We chose comfort or entertainment over the thing that wasn’t pressing, but necessary.

Time, like equity, can add value to our lives. I received a notice in the mail that my drivers license was expiring in about 90 days. The time it took to fill out the DMV application online without being “under the gun”gave me  peace of mind, averting an expired license experience or spending hours in line at the DMV on the last day. 

That time could now be used in another productive way. No stress.

Our life is essentially the sum total of our time. The experiences, relationships, and memories that define our lives are all built in how we spend our time. 

The choices we make in how, where and with whom we spend our time may be just as important as time itself. 

The nature of time is that each of us is running out of it everyday, all day. This befits us to remember the prayer of Moses in Psalm 90:12; ‘So teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom’ – ESV

Because life is so brief, Moses prays to God for wisdom on how to use our days because of how few there are left. 

In other words, “Give us Your wisdom, that teaches us how to best use our time.” -Kelvin translation

This opens up something important. Have you ever considered yourself just a manager of time rather than an owner of it? 

When it comes to life, we don’t “punch our own time clock”to exit. So with this in mind, I see the importance of Moses’ appeal all the more. 

Try to enjoy quality moments that aren’t clouded with complaining, dissatisfaction, anxiety and the like, this is our one and only tour through life, and it’s far too short… don’t sweat the small stuff.  

anablepsis.