The Pastor’s Piece, Pastor Kevin Cernek – FCFI Chaplain

“Time Is Of The Essence”

Christmas is almost past and we are on the cusp of another new year. Time marches on. Every year at this time, almost all the major news organizations are swamped with people and events that made news during the previous year. They start about two weeks before Christmas and don’t end until New Year’s Eve. We see headlines like, “The Best and the Worst of 2024,” “Top Ten Quotes of the Year,” “People Who Made the News,” and so on. There are articles by “experts” predicting what they expect to see happening in the year ahead – and some even go so far as to make predictions covering 10 or 20 or more years in the future.

We are very busy people. We’re always in a hurry. We walk fast, talk fast, and eat fast. And after we eat, we stand up and say, “Excuse me. I’ve gotta run.” We’ve got so much to do.  Even retired people have full schedules.  A retired gentleman told me that he is busier since he retired than he ever was when he was working.

So here we are, at the precipice of a brand new year. I wonder what this year will bring? 365 days from now when the year is over, will we be looking back with joy, or with regret? Will we be looking at the future with anticipation, or with dread?

The Psalmist wrote, “Show me, O Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is,” (Psalm 39:4). And then again, “The length of our days is 70 years – or 80, if we have the strength…they quickly pass, and we fly away,” (Psalm 90:10).

There are just 8,760 hours in a year and we want to make the most of every opportunity. Someone has said that life is what happens to you while you’re making plans to do something else. True, isn’t it?

Time is of the essence. The Bible says our lives are like a vapor, here for a moment and then gone. Solomon says blessed is the one who finds meaningful work for his hands to do. God has given us a block of time and meaningful work to do in that time. It is important that we make the most of what He has given us. 

Someone has calculated how a typical lifespan of 70 years is spent. Here is the estimate:

Sleep…………….23 years………..32.9%
Work……………..16 years………..22.8%
TV………………..8 years………..11.4%
Eating…………….6 years…………8.6%
Travel…………….6 years…………8.6%
Leisure………….4.5 years…………6.5%
Illness……………4 years…………5.7%
Dressing…………..2 years…………2.8%
Religion…………0.5 years…………0.7%

Total…………….70 years…………100

Something to consider as we put 2024 into the history books: The ups and downs of history are really the hand of God at work. Behind the seemingly impersonal flow of history is the very personal hand of God directing man’s steps and the steps of our nation and every other nation on earth. 

The great human leaders of history pale before the record of Jesus Christ. You can name them all – Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, Napoleon, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln – who among them can be compared to Jesus Christ? Which of them would you mention in the same breath with His name? Or put them all together and their impact on this world is less than the impact of the Man from Bethlehem.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!