April 8. Borrowed? I believe it has been.

Do we borrow in our businesses? I believe that we do, but what is it that we borrow? We borrow capital to purchase and deploy resources. We buy equipment, real estate and buildings, and create operating capital.

That is all easy enough to identify but there are other items we have borrowed as well. Two of the most important items we are borrowing are words and time. Let us focus on the time. We are all on borrowed time. We know that life is short. Even the ownership of our businesses might be short in the big scheme of things.

It is challenging to think about your enterprises and begin to have the perspective that your management and direction of the enterprise is just on borrowed time. What do you want to do while you have it?

If it is borrowed, do you want to pass it on to someone in better shape that It is in when you received or created it? Would you rather deplete the enterprise of its valuable assets and then pass it on? Is that how you borrow something? What might you do differently this week in the way you borrow?

Evaluating how we are borrowing time and words will likely require us to collaborate with others in new ways. The rewards might be more valuable than you can imagine. Who is the first person you would borrow some time to spend with them?

As Christians, one may believe that our physical presence here on earth is not necessarily what it will be in heaven. That makes this body we maintain something borrowed. How we treat it matters. In fact, we do not know exactly what heaven will be like. Maybe our minds and bodies are borrowed things as well.

Luke 13:6 begins the parable of the fruitless fig tree. It gets to live on some borrowed time. It was fruitless for three years and was about to be destroyed. The gardener begs the owner for just one more year of growth and opportunity. We are living on borrowed time here on this earth.

Christ showed us an example of how to make the best of it. If you knew that this was the last seven days on the earth for yourself, what would you do to connect with Christ this week? Would you spend more time with the television or talking with a friend or relative?

Make the best of the next seven days. Remember, they are borrowed, you might want to return them better than you received them, it is up to you.

Let us pray, Heavenly Father, thank you for the gift of the day. The flowers are blooming somewhere, the gentle rains will fall, and the sun will rise. Help us to live fully in the borrowed time we have. May we return the day to you in the best manner possible. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen