God Sustains His Eternity in the Human Person
God is eternal. He nourishes me with his eternity … and completely destroys my waste of time … [Thus] Jesus gives me all the works of his most holy life, and his love, from all eternity. (OOCC, X, pp. 457 - 458; STA, 501)
St. Vincent Pallotti considered time as a gift from God, whom he experienced as eternal and timeless. Hence, God, the author of time, is eternal and he allots time to everyone as per his design and plan. God’s allotment of time to every human person is not based on the merit of the person concerned, but rather it depends on the bounty of God’s mercy towards him. For this reason, no one has a claim on his time and everyone is accountable to the time God has allotted to him. Therefore, time, though a free gift from God, must not be squandered away but must be used for the honor and glory of God, who is the totality of time. Viewing himself from the perspective of the eternal and timeless God, St. Vincent felt that he did not profitably make use of the God-given time. He wished that the eternal God nourished him with his eternity and completely destroyed his tendency to waste time. He also prayed that Jesus would bless him with all the works of his most holy life and his love, so that he may be able to use the time God had allotted for him to accomplish the very works of Jesus in the context of his own life and manifest his love to all, in the process bringing honor and glory to the eternal and timeless God.
Do I recognize the eternal God as the author of time and realize that it is a gift from him? Do I acknowledge that I am accountable for the time God has allotted to me? Do I use the God-given time to manifest the works and love of Jesus through my life? Do I use time to give honor and glory to God, who is eternal and timeless?
Before the mountains were begotten and the earth and the world were brought forth, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. (Ps. 90: 2)