We are blessed with 24 hours in a day; 60 minutes in each of
those hours; 60 seconds in each of those minutes. Each of those seconds is an opportunity to
make a choice; to do something creative or do something destructive; to do
something that builds us up or tears us down; to do something joyful or do
something wasteful or do something that simply needs getting done. The good news of grace is that God’s love for
us is not dependent on how we use that time.
We may go into the deep depths of binge-watching a show which we will not
remember in a year but from which we cannot turn away, coming up after hours of
time that we can never get back, embarrassed because of missed appointments or
chores left undone, and still find that God is in love with us; is waiting to
see what we will do next.
Some
argue that time is an illusion, a convenient frame of reference that breaks
down with careful measurement. What we
perceive as time is a trick of the light.
We look at a starry night and are seeing the past, the light from
millions of years ago from stars light-years away. Some of the stars we think we see now may
have in fact exploded thousands of years in the past. Even as I look at you across the room I am
not seeing you now. I am seeing the
light that bounced off you with an infinitesimally small time delay. I am always seeing where you just were and
never exactly where you are right now.
My
Hebrew professor, Walter Michel, frequently proclaimed that “Eternity has
nothing to do with time!” As he
explained it, the Hebrew word for eternity is more about a state of being than
an unending timeline. We should not
worry about being bored in heaven, because life after death is more about
entering an eternal present with God. I
sometimes imagine that God sees the universe like a mural in a natural history
museum describing the origins of life.
As you walk by the mural, you begin at one-end with single-celled creatures
that over time develop into plants and animals, life-forms becoming
increasingly complex; insects fly; amphibians follow them out of the water;
dinosaurs rise and rule and fall; scruffy mammals slowly inch towards life as
primates; finally homo sapiens walk
upright only to take their seats in office chairs. As we walk by the mural, time passes. Yet if we stand at the doorway of the room,
we can see the whole picture, taking in species that never coexisted. To God everything is present; every moment is
this holy moment. Christ is always
crucified and always resurrected.
With
all this in the background I would suggest some different ways to measure the
stewardship of time. The common way to
talk about use of time in my context is productivity. What did you get done? How many things did you cross off your
list? While it is true that sloth was listed
as one of the seven deadly sins, there is more to life than productivity. Constant production can turn into mere
busyness, doing for the sake of doing.
One
question we might ask is : Was the use of time creative or consumptive? This idea goes along with the “make something
beautiful” theme I have been discussing.
Did the use of time create beautiful moments of lovingkindness, justice
or peace? Did the use of time point
people toward the beauty that is God?
Or did
the use of time consume other people’s work or further consume God’s
creation? Just to be clear, consumption
is not a sin in and of itself. When I
read a book I am consuming the author’s creative work, but hopefully those new
ideas will create something new in me or will recreate me, allowing for rest
and renewal. The issue is when there is
no balance, when we are only consuming or overconsuming and rarely creating.
Another
question we might ask about the use of time is: Were you present? Often we spend our moments analyzing the past
or fearing the future. Yet God is only
found in the present and one of implications of the illusion of time is that
the true you is only found in the present.
So be there. Whatever you do, do
it in that moment where God is and you are.
There is an old Zen Buddhist story about a teacher who was asked about
the secret of happiness. He replied,
“When I eat my rice, I eat my rice. When
I wash my bowl, I wash my bowl.” Pay attention to the tastes and textures of
the moment. They are gift from God.
Finally,
as the 3rd commandment (as my tradition counts it) reminds you,
don’t neglect to rest. If you can take
part in restful celebration for a day each week, do it. Sabbath is more than being somewhere Saturday
evening or Sunday morning. Sabbath is
recognizing God’s wisdom that human beings are not meant to be in constant
production. It is not good or
healthy. Find Sabbath hours, Sabbath
minutes or Sabbath moments. Remind
yourself to stop and breath and pay attention.
Sabbath is not a waste of time.
Sabbath is a gift of rest and refreshment. We rest because it is good; because it is what
allows us to be creative; because it is a gift.
The
stewardship of time is similar to the stewardship of money or possessions. It is not just about religious choices, but
every choice with we make about how to use our time. Each moment is a gift; some for creating;
some for resting; some for simple appreciation, taking it all in. Each moment is a gift of our loving God.
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