Proverbs 2:11
“Discretion will preserve you...Understanding will keep you.”
Notice the two key words here, preserve and keep. These two words deal with a powerful dynamic in life...one which wears heavily upon us all...and in one way or another in the end...will overcome us all...and that is the element of time.
One of the most common correlations between preservation and time, is the one that is related to food. Throughout early human history the most important key to improving life was discovering new ways to obtain food and preserve it over long periods of time. Preservation played a key role to early prosperity...and during hard times...a necessity for sheer survival! However, its relevance in today's economy is even greater. We spend billions and billions of dollars every year in an effort not only to preserve food, but also knowledge, technology, business market shares, eminent domains, and all the things that could preserve and keep our livelihoods safeguarded well into the future.
So what is the key to longevity? How can we keep things in life from going bad? I believe that the answer is patience! Life is not a sprint. It is a long time consuming marathon! One filled with important turns at key crossroads of life! One whose sidelines are littered with unhealthy distractions. Discretion and understanding are two components of wisdom which give us the power to run hard...run long...run wise...and finish well. Consider this. After the great flood, Noah did not become the heir of the entire planet, because he suddenly rushed ahead of everyone and beat someone to the punch. He inherited because...after the storm had passed...after all the turmoil...Noah simply was the last man left standing! Albeit, he did have the foresight that a flood was coming, and the wisdom to build an ark. The fact still remains that because of his great patience...he simply outlasted everyone else!
We must begin to understand that time is not our enemy. Time is our friend! Despite all that may be against us, time is on our side! Our best days are still ahead of us. We can look to tomorrow with great expectation, knowing that there is something more to be learned. Therefore, because we, as God’s children, have an open access to the wisdom and understanding we need to preserve ourselves and our posterity to a future full of an abundance of peace and happiness...we therefore, have an unwavering hope that with time...life gets better...not worse.