Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Seconds was all it took.
Seconds from this:
To this:
Just like that. I was a winner of an auction, and suddenly in a matter of seconds, I lost my bid. SECONDS. And this wasn’t the worst bid. There was once when I bidded and I was actually the winner until like the last 1 second, then suddenly, I lost! :O
I mean it was terrible! One second I was so excited about getting my camera, and the next second, I was left with a “you’ve been outbidded” phrase.
How fleeting the moments are on ebay. ): and up til now, I haven’t won a single auction via bids. I normally have to find those buy it now buttons then click on them, and win it. If not, I’d always lose to these sneaky bidders who always bid so late! GRRRRR…
But more than that, I think there’s a valuable lesson to be learnt here. In life, sometimes, it’s the seconds that really count. It could be that spilt second when you’re walking past this friend in school that you’re not exactly close to, and suddenly, you just feel like, maybe he’s having a bad day, and you wanna say something, but you let that moment slip by, and then its gone.
Or perhaps you see one of those quiet classmates at the bus stop, and in a spilt second, you figure, maybe you can strike up a conversation, and then your bus comes and the moment passes you by.
I’ve had my fair share of spilt seconds. I will never forget this day in JC. I was pushing my way through the crowd, and trying to get to my next class. In the midst of the sea of people, I saw her, a classmate from my secondary school. She was all the way at the other end of the throng of people, and it was so packed, and in that spilt second, I felt the urge to just shout out her name, “HEY! HEY! How’s it going?”. I felt the urge to say hello, and smile. I felt the urge to yell but in the midst of that crowded corridor, and the jostling folk, I let that spilt second pass me by. No big deal, I’ll see her tomorrow.
Tomorrow never came.
That morning as I entered the school hall, a solemn hush filled the air, and a teary eyed friend told me that that afternoon, the very afternoon when I had the urge to say something to her, she went home to her 20 storey high home, slipped off her shoes, placed them neatly beside her school bag, folded her glasses and arranged it by the shoes and the bag, then she leaped.
She leaped.
That one leap opened up a whole sea of questions for so many people. That step off the ledge, crushed so many dreams that her parents had. That jump off ended a life so full of potential, a journey that could lead to anywhere. The world was her oyster and in her hand she could’ve held that precious pearl.
That leap, made me wish so hard, that if for a moment I could turn back the clock, I would’ve yelled out across the throng and the hordes that day in that crowded corridor. I would’ve called out her name, and smiled and asked her if she was doing ok. That was my spilt second, and that was the spilt second that I felt, in my heart of hearts that perhaps if anyone had done that, the act of stopping and giving that spilt second to a friend by just saying hello or sharingn something, or sharing Jesus, these are the spilt seconds that changes things. These are the spilt seconds that changes a person’s life. These are the spilt seconds that save lives. These are the spilt seconds that create destinies.
With the up coming July event, seize the seconds friends. Ask your friends, to head down with you. If they reject you its ok, continue to be a friend. A good one who reads them well, a good one who knows when are the right moments to sweep in to make that difference. In the July event, when there’s an altar call, turn around, and perhaps your eyes may meet someone else’s eyes, and then in that spilt second, you have to make a choice. Do you go up to start the conversation to ask them if they wanna know more about Jesus? Or in that spilt second, do you avoid the confrontation and just pretend that the chair in front of you suddenly grew some very interesting fabric patterns. But more than the July event, its about the everyday seconds that we miss out.
Up until today, I wish, I so wish I had caught hold of those spilt seconds. Its ok that I lost that camera, but its not ok that I lost a friend.
Seize the seconds.
Relish in the minutes.
Bask in the hours.
Embrace the days.
Savour the weeks.
Revel in the months.
Glory in the years that God has given.
Time is truly a blessing from God, and time is what we make of it. Seize it.
I mean it was terrible! One second I was so excited about getting my camera, and the next second, I was left with a “you’ve been outbidded” phrase.
How fleeting the moments are on ebay. ): and up til now, I haven’t won a single auction via bids. I normally have to find those buy it now buttons then click on them, and win it. If not, I’d always lose to these sneaky bidders who always bid so late! GRRRRR…
But more than that, I think there’s a valuable lesson to be learnt here. In life, sometimes, it’s the seconds that really count. It could be that spilt second when you’re walking past this friend in school that you’re not exactly close to, and suddenly, you just feel like, maybe he’s having a bad day, and you wanna say something, but you let that moment slip by, and then its gone.
Or perhaps you see one of those quiet classmates at the bus stop, and in a spilt second, you figure, maybe you can strike up a conversation, and then your bus comes and the moment passes you by.
I’ve had my fair share of spilt seconds. I will never forget this day in JC. I was pushing my way through the crowd, and trying to get to my next class. In the midst of the sea of people, I saw her, a classmate from my secondary school. She was all the way at the other end of the throng of people, and it was so packed, and in that spilt second, I felt the urge to just shout out her name, “HEY! HEY! How’s it going?”. I felt the urge to say hello, and smile. I felt the urge to yell but in the midst of that crowded corridor, and the jostling folk, I let that spilt second pass me by. No big deal, I’ll see her tomorrow.
Tomorrow never came.
That morning as I entered the school hall, a solemn hush filled the air, and a teary eyed friend told me that that afternoon, the very afternoon when I had the urge to say something to her, she went home to her 20 storey high home, slipped off her shoes, placed them neatly beside her school bag, folded her glasses and arranged it by the shoes and the bag, then she leaped.
She leaped.
That one leap opened up a whole sea of questions for so many people. That step off the ledge, crushed so many dreams that her parents had. That jump off ended a life so full of potential, a journey that could lead to anywhere. The world was her oyster and in her hand she could’ve held that precious pearl.
That leap, made me wish so hard, that if for a moment I could turn back the clock, I would’ve yelled out across the throng and the hordes that day in that crowded corridor. I would’ve called out her name, and smiled and asked her if she was doing ok. That was my spilt second, and that was the spilt second that I felt, in my heart of hearts that perhaps if anyone had done that, the act of stopping and giving that spilt second to a friend by just saying hello or sharingn something, or sharing Jesus, these are the spilt seconds that changes things. These are the spilt seconds that changes a person’s life. These are the spilt seconds that save lives. These are the spilt seconds that create destinies.
With the up coming July event, seize the seconds friends. Ask your friends, to head down with you. If they reject you its ok, continue to be a friend. A good one who reads them well, a good one who knows when are the right moments to sweep in to make that difference. In the July event, when there’s an altar call, turn around, and perhaps your eyes may meet someone else’s eyes, and then in that spilt second, you have to make a choice. Do you go up to start the conversation to ask them if they wanna know more about Jesus? Or in that spilt second, do you avoid the confrontation and just pretend that the chair in front of you suddenly grew some very interesting fabric patterns. But more than the July event, its about the everyday seconds that we miss out.
Up until today, I wish, I so wish I had caught hold of those spilt seconds. Its ok that I lost that camera, but its not ok that I lost a friend.
Seize the seconds.
Relish in the minutes.
Bask in the hours.
Embrace the days.
Savour the weeks.
Revel in the months.
Glory in the years that God has given.
Time is truly a blessing from God, and time is what we make of it. Seize it.
Sis Raine
6:08 PM
(SALVATION)
