There’s no time to kill between the cradle and the grave
Father time still takes a toll on every minute that we save
Legal tender’s never gonna change the number on your days
The highest cost of livin’s dyin that’s what everybody pays
So have it spent before you get the bill, there’s no time to kill
Clint Black

Everyone’s time is terminal. 86,400 seconds a day, 315,000 seconds a year, and who knows how many years, but no one gets more minutes in a day, no one gets more hours in a year than anyone else. And no one lives forever. Time is the great equalizer.

Clint isn’t the first person to write so cleverly and accurately about time. King Solomon did the same with poetry that captures the essence of life in brilliant brevity. His song still sings three thousand years after it was composed.

Eccl. 3:1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

Beautiful isn’t it? But let’s think about it practically.

Some of us are so over-booked that we never have time to do the things essential to the good life, to plant, to heal, to laugh, and to dance. Some of us never give ourselves time to mourn and weep over things that had to be torn down, and yes, over things that had to die. We do not give ourselves time to reflect on the important things and in consequence we live shallow lives, searching the internet for stuff to fill the space between us an eternity.

Let’s get off that hellish highway shall we? Life goes by too fast to let the good things go. Do you still have kids at home? Take time with them. Are you married? Set aside time for your mate. Do you believe in the Kingdom of God? Make a plan for how you will invest your time in building it this year.

Remember Solomon’s words as you set your clocks forward this Saturday, and while you’re at it, remember Clint’s too:

If you don’t look ahead nobody will; there’s no time to kill.
CB