Out Our Way: In the twinkling of an eye

1 Corinthians 15:52 "In a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, the trumpet will sound, the dead shall be raised imperishable, and we will be changed."

Out our way, the weather is sometimes rapid in its changes. An "Alberta Clipper" will transform a road that was dry and clear yesterday into a huge snowbank today. Ranchers and farmers and rural folks know these things. But we also know they won't last, that time passes, and, sooner or later, the snow melts. But the wait can seemingly take forever.

A friend asked about how rapidly the Rapture would come and what scripture said about time speeding up beforehand. I assume she was thinking of this verse from First Corinthians. Yes, when the "trumpet sounds," the change will be instantaneous. Ah, but the waiting period is a different story!

When Charlie and I worked "the Tiger Ridge" for Big Mike, the first hours seemed to go by pretty quickly. The horses were fresh and so were we. After days in the Church study working on planning sermons, worship services, "Bruintown Tales" and the cartoon that went with it, as well as basic administration duties, etc; getting outside with Doc and smelling the perfume of the sage and feeling the crisp air was magic. Time went by so quickly!

Later - worn down by heat, sweat and an aching back - the ride back to Charlie's red trailer seemed to take forever. The "five-minute ride" out to the herd when I was fresh seemed to have turned into a two-hour torture on the way back. But in truth, it took the same amount of time ... it just felt longer.

Now, I am no Einstein - just ask Doc - but my "theory of relativity" is that time remains the same regardless - it is only our perception of it that changes. When I was a kid, time went slow. As an old duffer, it seems to have sped up. But the truth is, it has not changed. So, as we approach death and the Resurrection, does time speed up? Nope. Only our sense of it makes it seem that way.

However, there is this: Revelation 10:6 " And time shall be no more!" Time remains the same until the end - then it becomes irrelevant for, 1 Corinthians 15:53, "the mortal shall put on immortality."

So - does time speed up at the end? Nope. It simply ends and we move on. We leave it behind as we left our tinker toys when we outgrew them. The fond memories may remain - but we have more important things to focus on.

Be blessed and be a blessing!

Brother John

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The Rev. John Bruington is the retired pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Havre. He now lives in Colorado, but continues to write "Out Our Way." He can be reached for comment or dialogue at [email protected].