Life is But a Moment in Time

As I was trying to read my devotions and was deep in thought I thought about the fact that just the other day I was a child and now I'm facing my seventy fifth birthday in two months. It was only yesterday that I was playing jacks and jumping rope with my friends. Now we are all grandparents. It was just a hop skip and a jump since we played hopscotch until now when even walking is affected by arthritis. Where did the time go? Life is fleeting, a moment in God's time.

When I was a child I was so anxious to grow up and get married and be a mommy. It seemed like forever. When I was a newlywed and Paul was drafted into the Army and was gone so long it felt like forever. It was much too long considering that he missed a year and a half of our first baby's life. Then when I was a young mother with four children it seemed like I would be forever attached to a buggy or stroller. It was not so long after all. My babies grew up much too fast. The next thing you knew they were teenagers and then high school graduates.

Our youngest child left the nest first when he joined the Marines at the age of seventeen. I only had him under my wings for seventeen short years. Only a short time in the scheme of things to nurture him and lead him to the Lord. But I was a baby Christian myself so I missed too many opportunities to lead him where I would like to see him be. Did I plant seeds or water them? I would hope that I did. He is a dear son and is good to us. He may be more than six feet tall but he is still my baby. But he has a mind of his own and I can only pray that he will accept the Lord, hopefully while I still have breath left on earth.

The next child to leave home was the oldest when she got married at the age of twenty eight. I was blessed to have her with me all those years. She enjoyed Bible stories and nursery rhymes as a child. She was close to me as the first born. I am thankful that she loves the Lord and brought her girls up in a Christian home. It was such a blessing when she became a wife and then a mother. I loved being a grandma to her two little girls. They are not little girls anymore but I still love being their grandmother. Time flew by and now I'm a great grandmother. That sure happened fast.

The third child to leave home was our third child, our first son. He joined the Air Force and then left the nest. He has only been home for Christmas one time since then. But he comes home during the year and shares quality time with us. As a child he did not get many opportunities to travel but he puts in the miles on his car now days. He takes us places when he is with us. As a child he loved his blocks and puzzles as well as all of his boys toys. When we had sons after two daughters we found out that boys make boys noises. Cars and trucks require that sound. That was just the other day. Where did our little boys go? As with our other son our prayer is for him to know the Lord.

We still have one daughter at home with us. When she was a young child she loved sitting with me in the rocking chair and being read to. I guess all of our children enjoyed this ritual. But some latched onto this ritual more than the others. She loved her "Nanny book" which was part of a large set of children's books we got when she was a baby. She grew to love the Word of God too. Thankfully we continue to go to church with her after all these many years. She is child number two in birth order. Not only did I teach her things when she was a child, she now teaches me new things such as using the computer.

Not only did the time swiftly pass in raising four children, it has been but a brief moment in time since our granddaughters were little. And now we have a great grandson. How can I be about to celebrate seventy five years here on earth? I was just seventeen years old and walking down the aisle at church on an August afternoon in 1954. I was looking forward to being a good wife and mother. Well, I tried to be those things but it wasn't all picket fences and roses. There were thorns along the way. Oh to go back and do a better job. Thankfully I came to know the Lord along the way and that is the best part of all. Where would I be without the Lord? I would be lost and facing my senior years in darkness. As it is I enjoy sharing my days with other believers and look forward to spending eternity with Jesus in the home He has prepared for me and other believers.

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.  Psalm 90: 12