When God created you, He created you for an endless duration. He gave you time here in order to prepare for eternity, and your future eternity depends on the improvement of time. Consider, therefore, what you have done with your past time. You are not now beginning your time. A great deal of time is past and gone; all the wit, power, and treasure of the universe cannot recover it. Many of you may well conclude that more than half of your time is gone. Although you might live to the ordinary age of man, your hourglass is more than half empty, and possibly there are but few sands remaining.

How have you let the precious golden sands of your hourglass run?

Every day that you have enjoyed has been precious; yes, your moments have been precious. But have you not wasted your precious moments, days--yes, years? If you should count how many days you have lived, what a total would there be! And how precious has every one of those days been! Consider, therefore, what you have done with them.

When you look back, and search, do you not find this past time of your lives in a great measure empty, having not been filled up with any good improvement? And if God, who has given you your time, should now call you to an account, what account could you give Him?

Even though we cannot change what has past, we can focus on the present and future. May we see that the time we have been given is precious and may we make improvements on how we spend this time. Ask yourself today, "What improvements can I make with the time I have been given?"

Edwards, Jonathan. What Account Will You Give to God? The Best of Jonathan Edwards. Colorado Springs: Cook Communications Ministries. 2006. 23-24.