Time, Time, Time

by Bob Setzer, Jr.
The Sunday after Father's Day, I marched into the sanctuary five minutes late. Not a "few minutes" late but five minutes late. On the dot.

At the time, I didn't realize I was late so I was shocked to open the sanctuary door and find the service already in progress. It was like awakening from a dream to discover the world you thought was real, was not, while the real world had gone on quite nicely without you.

Still dazed, trying to figure out what happened, I now realized why I hadn't heard the choir sing their final warm-up next door to my study. But it was June, after all, and sometimes in the dog days of summer, we have a solo rather than a choral anthem. The uncommon quiet and stillness in the moments just before worship should have been a warning, but lost in final preparations for the service, I didn't notice.

So standing up there in front of God and everybody, five minutes late for the high and holy hour, I wracked my brain: How did this happen?! My digital watch clearly said "11:05," which meant I was right on time because I have run my watch five minutes fast for years. The practice provides an extra measure of protection to prevent just such embarrassing moments as this!!

Then it hit me. My daughter, Whitney, gave me a new watch for Father's Day. And this high-tech wonder automatically syncs with the national automatic clock in Colorado. So even though I set the watch five minutes fast, it automatically corrected the "error" without bothering to tell me!

Since then, I've been trying to readjust my life to live on "real" time.  Like the most annoying of friends (you know, someone like Jesus) the watch insists on always telling the truth! So far, I’ve been spared any further embarrassments, but I've also been surprised at how hard it is to retrain my time-keeping habits. Even small lies, once long-held and fiercely coddled, are not easily surrendered.

The experience left me wondering about all the other "little lies" that shape or rather, mis-shape my character: Lies about my good intentions ("This time will be different"), lies about diet and nutrition ("Really need to start that new regimen--tomorrow") lies about money ("One more credit card purchase can't hurt"), lies about...

On Sunday, we'll come face-to-face with one of the saltiest of the prophets, Amos, who proclaimed God was dropping a plumb line into the life of Israel (Amos 7:7-9). What was straight and right and true would stand; what was warped and twisted was destined to fall.

Plumb lines, atomic clocks, and yes, Jesus, proclaim there are certain, unerring truths that define our lives whether we like it or not. I don't like that rule, but as my five-minutes- late worship caper proves, I am stuck with it. A loving God long ago decided, "The truth shall set you free" (John 8:32). The only play we get to make is deciding when to fess up and find the true freedom our lies can never give.