TIME

Lately I've been bombarded with songs, Bible verses, conversations, and TV shows that all have to do with time.

"time is all you have"

"your time is almost up"

"time is money"

"I just need more time"

The thing is, we don't control time. We don't know how much time we have left on this earth, only God knows. God is TIMELESS. That means that He doesn't comply with the same time line that we make for ourselves. I may say I want to be married in a year. If that is in God's plan for me, I might be married in a year (not that that's a true wish of mine). But what's more important to God is me being ready for marriage, and for my future spouse to be ready as well. Only then will we be introduced and take the necessary steps to get to the point of marriage.

I am not a very patient person. Sometimes (okay, several times) I get frustrated when things don't happen the way I want them to, or exactly when I want them to. God knows what's best for me, and He is working in His own way to mold me into the person He has created me to be. I pray that He helps me be more patient, more understanding, less jealous, less judgemental; I want other people to be able to see HIM in me, for them to know that I am doing HIS work, spreading HIS love. That is what I'm striving for. And by striving, I mean I'm taking baby steps. I feel like my mindset has become "when I get older, I want to be like that." What I'm beginning to realize is that i am older now. There is no time like the present to start doing the things I want to do, to start changing my actions and lifestyle to better portray the things I want it to. Some of the song lyrics I've heard are these:

"My best friend gave me the best advice

He said each day's a gift and not a given right

Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind

And try to take the path less traveled by

That first step you take is the longest stride

If today was your last day

and tomorrow was too late

Could you say goodbye to yesterday?

Would you live each moment like your last?

Leave old pictures in the past,

donate every dime you have?

If today was your last day

...

If today was your last day

Would you make your mark by mending a broken heart?

You know it's never too late to shoot for the stars

Regardless of who you are

So do whatever it takes

cause you can't rewind a moment in this life

Let nothing stand in your way

Cause the hands of time are never on your side"

-if today was your last day, nickelback

"I asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end

how's it hit ya when you get that kind of news?

Man what did you do?

He said

I went skydiving

I went Rocky Mountain climbing

I went 2.7 seconds on a bull named Fu Man Chu

And I loved deeper

And I spoke sweeter

And I gave forgiveness I'd been denying

And he said some day I hope you get the chance

To live like you were dyin'

He said I was finally the husband, that most the time I wasn't

And I became a friend, a frind would like to have

And all of a sudden goin' fishin, wasn't such an imposition

And I went three times that year I lost my dad

Well I finally read the good book, and I took a good long hard look

At what I'd do if I could do it all again"

-live like you were dying, tim mcgraw

"Our hearts are hungry for food that won't come

And we could make a feast from these crumbs

And we're all staring down the barrel of a gun

So if your life flashed before you, what do you wish you would've done?

Yeah we gotta start lookin' at the hands of the time we've been given

if this is all we got, then we gotta start thinkin'

if every second counts on a clock that's tickin'

gotta live like we're dying

We only got 86 400 seconds in a day to

turn it all around or throw it all away

we gotta tell 'em that we love 'em while we've got the chance to say

gotta live like we're dying"

- live like we're dying, kris allen

I don't know about you, but lyrics like that really make me think about the way I've been living my life. I say goodbye to people every time I leave a room, because I never know when/if I'll see them again. I push myself to do certain things as soon as possible, because I may not have time to do it later. But what about my prayer life? I seem to be doing the opposite. I think "oh, I can pray after I watch this show" and then I forget, or "I'll pray before I go to bed" and sometimes I just fall asleep. I've been told a million times that I need to be careful of my words and actions, because that may be people's last impressions of me. I don't know why that's just now sinking in. Hopefully I will start procrastinating less and being more effecient with my time.

Now off to clean my room, which I have been meaning to do for about a week now...

p.s. sorry this seems so long. I've got lots of thoughts going around in my head right now. I think I shall try to start blogging more often, esp some old journal reflections that I think should be shared. Peace & Prayers to all! :)