Tick-Tock (not TikTok)

I remember as a child hearing the tick-tock of an old mantel clock in the home of one of our elderly kinfolks. At the top of the hour, the clock would make a gong for the number of the hour. It was always a little creepy to me. The passing of time is kind of weird when you think about it, like the whittling off of your life second by second.

Time takes its own speed according to the situation. It seems to drag on like a snail if we are in a long and boring meeting. It races like a Thoroughbred if we wake up late for work. Either way, the clock of life on earth is still ticking away. We need to make the best of it.

Our new calendars are soon to read 2023. About two thousand years, two decades plus three was the time of Jesus Christ. Five hundred thirty-one years has passed since Columbus sailed from the old world to the new. Tick-tock, tick-tock!

Anticipating this New Year’s celebration of the passing of time, we look back and look forward. We think about God’s blessings in the good things that have come our way and we consider His mercy and grace in the difficult things we have endured. God is good in both.

Considering the future, we pray for God’s blessings, protection, and strength to face the known and the unknown. This life and this world are uncertain, but the promises of God are sure. Our next breath is in the hands of God, and I am very comfortable with that certain uncertainty. I cannot be threatened with the prospect of Heaven.

Many ask the question, “What can we do, to prepare ourselves for uncertainty in an uncertain world? My encouragement is:
1) Become more spiritually strong by praying and studying God’s Word.
2) Do something positive every day, be diligent.
3) Love and help your family and friends.
4) Be faithful to the folks who will shed tears over your grave.
5) Ask forgiveness from God and others, forgive without being asked.

You may not build a bridge in 2023 or have a top-ten song, but if you do the simple five things above you will be ahead of the game, whether you lose twenty pounds or not.

May God bless you in 2023. Stay humble with others and true to yourself and God. Love, serve, and follow Jesus.

Yours on the Journey,

Harry L. Whitt