We gamble with time, and we always lose. Time holds all the cards. Time does not need to cheat to win. But it cheats, nonetheless.
Time cheats us in our relationships. It cheats us with our spiritual growth. It cheats us with lost opportunities. I wish I had spent more time in prayer and communion with God. I wish I had spent more time with family and the people that I love.
We think we have more time than we really do. At the end of the day, we look back remorsefully and think about things we wish we would have done. We procrastinate and put things off until it is too late, and the opportunity is lost.
In his letter to the Ephesians Paul wrote: “make the most of your time, because the days are evil.” The word translated “make the most” – ἐξαγοράζω – refers to a purchase at the agora, as if we could go to the market and buy time. It is better translated “Buy back the time.” If only we could buy time. . . Perhaps we could win one or two of the gambles of life.
Death always brings us face to face with time. We look back at joys and regrets. At victories and defeats. At happiness and sorrows. And we wonder, what if . . .
“Each man’s death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind. Therefore, ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.” – Donne