What time is it?

In a midwestern factory town, a man paused every morning in front of a corner jewelry store. He took note of the oversize clock in the window, set his watch, and went on his way. The jeweler noticed the man’s behavior, and when he no longer appeared, he wondered why.

A few months went by, and one afternoon that same man strolled into the jewelry store looking for a gift. The jeweler recognized him, and after completing the transaction, inquired as to why he no longer walked by the store each day.

“Oh, I was the production foreman at the factory for forty years, but now I’m retired. I was the one who blew the quitting whistle in the afternoon, so, I stopped by every day and set my watch by the big clock in your window.”

“That’s interesting,” the jeweler replied with a crooked grin. “I used to set that clock every day by the factory’s quitting whistle.”

It’s the most natural thing in the world to take our cues from those around us, when, all the while, they are doing the same with us. Who are you watching? Who is watching you?

At some point, we must go outside ourselves and our circles to the Maker and Source of all things. He alone has the correct time. It is safe to set our watches and our lives by Him and Him alone. We are, after all, followers of Jesus. Aren’t we?

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves
and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.”
2 Corinthians 10:12


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