Isn't it about Time?

(I finally took time to write what I wanted to write. I have homework awaiting me, however!)

I've had a lot of different thoughts about the subject of time on my mind recently. As pictured above, my beloved watch stopped working the other day. I have had this watch for over two years now, which could very well be a record! It was a $5 wal-mart special, which makes it even more significant. I wore it everyday of my mission. It's kind of symbolic of some things- like the time I spent in the service of the Lord.

Speaking of my mission, I recently went to check my missionary e-mail account, only to find that it has been shut down! I was aware that they close it down when you've been home for awhile, but that was just a slap in the face to me! It was a rude awakening. Like, "Yep, it's official. You're an old returned missionary!"

And then, at the end of last month my mission temple reccomend expired. Sheesh! I may as well have expired!

I've now been home from my mission for about 5 months. As each month passes, the sweet reality of my mission fades even more. I know it's over. I came to terms with that a little while ago. But, 5 months?! Can that be possible? What have I done with myself in that amount of time? That's nearly 1/3 of another sister's mission!

Something I am coming to learn more and more is that really, in a way, time doesn't matter. (Now, I know to a certain extent it does...) In the eternal scheme of things, it doesn't anyway. It doesn't matter that I am 23 and still in college. It doesn't matter if I'm not married right now, I will be married for eternity. That's a very long, long time! Alma 40:8 says that "...time only is measured unto men..." God's timetable is different from ours.

I am so intensely focused on school these days. That actually makes time go by really fast! I sometimes feel like I am in my own world, on my own little time table. I go to class, and come home and do my homework. That takes up 98% of my time. Then I stop to think about something, such as visiting someone, and realize it's been weeks since I've seen them, when it really feels like it's been days.

I would love to have more time, to do more things. I read something comforting from a talk by Pres. Eyring which states: "Some of you may feel overwhelmed by the lack of time. But there is another way to look at this. You can see it as an opportunity to test your faith. The Lord loves you and watches over you. He is all-powerful, and He promised: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

That is a true promise. When we put God’s purposes first, He will give us miracles. If we pray to know what He would have us do next, He will multiply the effects of what we do in such a way that time seems to be expanded. He may do it in different ways for each individual, but I know from long experience that He is faithful to His word." ("Education for Real Life", Henry B. Eyring, Ensign, Oct. 2002, 14)

I love that! There's so much I could say about the subject of time. It's important to enjoy the present, and just do the best we can. We have to trust God's timing. As it says in Ecclesiastes, "To everything there is a season..." It's so important to have an eternal perspective when it comes to time.