How Missionaries Tell Time

Clock for the railway at Whipsnade Zoo (Photo credit: Martin Pettitt)

The Bible makes many references to time.  Some are well-known, such as Ecclesiastes chapter 3 (There is a time for every thing and a season for every activity under heaven.) and Esther 4:14 (Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?).  Revelation tells us that Satan knows his time is short.

Time seems to go very quickly when we think of our children growing or our loved ones aging.

Everyone marks time in their own way, but we all count down the time until events that are important to us: births, weddings, anniversaries, graduations, holidays, etc.  Missionaries tend to mark time by additional events.  We count down the days, months, or years until we get to leave for "the field," until furlough and our chance to see our families again, until a friend is scheduled to arrive or leave, until the electricity or water might return, until the government processes our paper work, etc.

Sometimes...the countdown seems to go like this:

 Ok, what really happened in this video is that we purchased a clock here and when we changed the batteries, the clock just randomly decided to go backwards.  We filmed it because we thought it was so bizarre.  A quick "thump" knocked some sense into the clock and it began working correctly again.  (I wish that application worked as well in other situations here!)  There have definitely been times in my life where I would have done things differently if I could have "turned back the clock."  Other times, the clock moves way too slowly or way too quickly.

I'm thankful that God is not governed by time like we are.  He never sleeps, never grows weary, and always has perfect timing! When I grow old and feeble in mind or body, the Ancient of Days will still be all-powerful, all-knowing and ever present with me. And when I think I'll never last until the next event, whether it's furlough or a day of electricity, He is my sustainer.