How to Change Your Perspective on Time

I saw the sun rise over the beach recently. I’ve seen it rise countless times before, but it still surprised me. Not only was it larger and redder than I remembered—and more beautiful than I can describe—it was also moving faster than I expected. I could measure the speed of its rising against the buildings on the horizon, and I saw it launch itself above them into the sky in the span of mere minutes. Does the sun always move this fast? It must, but I don’t normally perceive its speed so clearly because I don’t normally have stationary objects to measure it against.

Life is like that, too. Time constantly moves us, steadily, relentlessly, without ever adjusting its stride or changing its course. We easily lose track of its movement among the busy challenges and joys of living, but sometimes—like the sunrise at the beach—we realise. Sometimes, we see time measured against hard, immovable facts like the growth of trees or children, the passing of birthdays, or the whitening of hair. Sometimes, it comes as a surprise—but time is not concerned about our consternation. It continues unabated, never slowing, never quickening, always moving forward. The movement of time is a simple fact. We cannot change it. The only thing we can change is how we view and react to it, and I’m convinced that our perspective on time has everything to do with hope.

Hope is why children welcome the passage of time. They eagerly anticipate each new birthday that unlocks new freedoms and expands their world. They want time to speed up, because their hope is set in the future. Later in life, we decide we’d rather have time slowed down or turned back, because some of our hope has come and we want more time to enjoy it, and some of our hope hasn’t come and we want another chance to try for it. Hope is what changes our perspective. Without hope for the future, time is only a thief taking everything we love, tarnishing every beautiful sunrise with anticipation of the coming sunset. With hope, even the darkest night becomes bearable in anticipation of the coming dawn.

To change your perspective on time, you need a sure, stable, solid hope for the future. Nothing else will do. More than a good retirement, you need a hope anchored beyond the relentless ravages of aging and even beyond death itself. And, praise God, this hope is gloriously possible in Jesus Christ, who conquered death and won eternal joy for everyone who trusts in him. With a hope like this, time is no longer an enemy. It no longer has the power to steal your treasure, if your treasure is Christ. With a hope like this, the passage of time can only move you closer to the fullness of every unfulfilled longing this beautiful broken world has failed to satisfy because it can only move you closer to your Saviour. Instead of a thief, time becomes an opportunity—a race to run towards a joyful finish, a feast to be tasted fresh each morning without any need for holding back or hoarding, a seed to be planted towards an eternal harvest. Let the sun rise and move across the sky as quickly as it likes. I will enjoy every day I’m given on earth knowing that time is my friend. Like a child, I can welcome the passing hours that move me ever nearer to my immovable hope.