Marking The Seasons

Marking the Seasons

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. . . . A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. Ecclesiastes 3:1-2, 4

In the last decade I have lost both of my parents, my father-in-law, and my oldest son. I’ve also talked to hundreds of other parents who have lost children, and to children who have lost siblings. It never gets easy, and it often seems unfair. But death is a part of life in this world, and even though it is always hard to swallow, I think God uses those losses to remind us not to take life and love for granted.

When we lose loved ones, we grieve that we won’t be able to spend any more time with them. Then we start to wish we had spent more time with them when they were here, and we feel a sense of regret that we didn’t. Even if we knew the person for a long time and have many happy memories, we wish there were more to come. But we never know how long God will give us with someone. It may be decades, a few years, or even just a few weeks. It’s on God’s timetable, not ours.

The uncertainty of life reminds us to keep our priorities in order. When we are aware that our time with anyone may be short, we learn to put our families and friends above work and activities—in other words, relationships above possessions, status, and accomplishments. If we don’t, we will eventually regret it.

Shifting priorities may require some changes in your schedule, but it will always be worth it if it leads you to spend more time with the people you love, enjoy them and their gifts more deeply, and make more lasting memories with them. Remember that time is short and people are precious. Then arrange your activities around that.

Uncommon Key > Relationships matter more than anything else, but you never know how long you will have with the people around you. Don’t take them for granted. Make a phone call, send a card, or schedule a lunch date on your calendar today.