Most mornings, shortly after sunrise, I take a short walk near our home in East Tennessee. Sometimes I pass by an outcropping of limestone, a sedimentary rock formed by the successive deposits of mud, sand and the shells of small prehistoric marine organisms. I learned the vast limestone formations in this area occurred about 460 million years ago when this region was covered by the sea. Whenever I see the multiple layers of rock, which were slowly laid down over millions of years, I marvel at our Creator's greatness and eternal presence (Psalms 86:10, Isaiah 57:15).

This leads me to consider the age of the universe, which astronomers estimate to be nearly 14 billion years old. When I compare that enormous span of time to the incredible shortness of our human lives, I am amazed. The Bible explains that "the days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years" (Psalms 90:10). Besides being so brief, our lives seem to pass so quickly. The patriarch Job remarked, "My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle" (Job 7:6).

I'm 63 years old and in good health, but how much more time do I have? Maybe you ask the same question. Perhaps however, there is a better question we could pose. What are we doing with the time God has given us? Although our lives are busy, are we really accomplishing what is most important? Are we seeking "the Lord while He may be found" and carrying out our "Father's business" just as Christ did when He walked the earth (Isaiah 55:6, Luke 2:49)?

The Father gave His Son the vital mission "to preach the gospel to the poor…to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luke 4:18-19). Upon His ascension to heaven Christ instructed His followers to carry on His mission (Matthew 24:14, Matthew 28:19-20). They were also "to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" while growing in "grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (Matthew 6:33, 2 Peter 3:18, emphasis added).

As Jesus' followers, how are we doing on these assignments? Shouldn't we examine our daily priorities to see how much they need to be adjusted? Perhaps a lesson from limestone can help us do so.