Redeem the Time

Every one of us is on the clock. Facing a terminal cancer diagnosis, New York Times bestselling author and former senator Ben Sasse explores the strange and clarifying gift of dying -- and the habits that help us live in the moment.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           We know the truth about death intellectually, but we rarely let this reality shape the way we live our lives. We ignore, deny, and hide from our mortality. All of us are going to die. Some of us are going first, but let’s not get cocky – none of us are that far behind.  We cannot control any of it. It’s like sand flowing through an hourglass. What’s up to each of us is how to redeem the time.Living out a few bonus months thanks to an aggressive, experimental cancer treatment, Sasse Ben, alongside his daughter Alex Sasse, has written an inspiring book offers deep reflections on family, faith, work and how to grapple with our death and our finitude early. The wisdom in this book shows readers how:Dying can be a blessing because it shatters our self-delusions of control.Workaholism – one of our culture’s ultimate expressions of self-idolatry – is empty.In the digital era of nearly limitless information and unchecked consumerism, the future belongs to the reluctant optimists and gritty adapters who cultivate habits and relationships. The ancient wisdom of Ecclesiastes is uniquely suited to our current moment.After his unexpected cancer diagnosis in December 2025, The Wall Street Journal wrote that Ben Sasse “is dying in plain sight… He has spoken to the world about his impending demise like a Christian philosopher of death -- frank, unafraid, sometimes folksy, always graceful." The extraordinary response to his reflections about what truly matters in life ultimately led him and Alex Sasse to write this book together.As Ben Sasse powerfully shows us, we should admit that death is real and nonetheless not be incapacitated by it. To do that, we need to have a healthy view of time, our own finitude, and our natural inclination to work and worship. We’re all going to be pushing up daisies eventually. This remarkable book, destined to become a classic in wisdom literature, shows how we can all live -- and die -- well.