Got Time?
Recently, I heard a sermon that talked about busyness and it got me thinking about how much time we give to different activities and obligations. So I sat down and did some figuring using what I thought a typical teenage schedule might be like (because I work with the teenagers), which can be compared in most ways to an adults schedule. Here’s what I came up with based on a week…
Sleep- 56 hrs = 33% of week
School / Homework 45 hrs = 27% of week
Sports 15 hrs = 9% of week
Phone / texting 14 hrs = 8% of week
Computer / TV 14 hrs = 8% of week
Hygiene 7 hrs = 4% of week
Eating 10 hrs = 6% of week
Chores 7 hrs = 4% of week
Well I ran out of time and I haven’t figured out where God fits into this. No problem…we just cut out the chores right…or the hygiene? How about less sleep…just drink energy drinks all day. Oh, and you can eat while you drive.
I realize these numbers aren’t completely accurate, but sometimes its eye opening to put things in writing. Just like when we make a budget for our finances, we need to make a budget for our time. The bad thing about doing that is sometimes you would have to say no to something you really “want” to do, to have time for the things you really “need” to do. For example in finances…if you only have so much money per month, you can’t just spend it all at the beginning of the month because you will find yourself starving at the end of the month. So you have to decide what you need and what you want, then prioritize the needs and if you have something left over you start working on the wants. The same is true about spending time with God. He is a need…He should be a priority. If you don’t save some time for Him, you will be spiritually starving yourself. I know people who talk about how much they are struggling in their Christian walk that if they did a time budget just might figure out why!
As adults we have busy schedules also. Instead of school we have work and so on. The good news is this…we can make God part of everything we do! We can work (or do chores) as if working for the Lord himself.
Colossians 3:23-24 says “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward”.
In sports and other games we play we can play fair, be good sports, and win or lose gracefully, thus by our actions during that time, we are honoring God. When we are at work we can have a good attitude and always strive to do our best work regardless of the politics or drama that might be going on around us…and so on.
I have several things I do each week to serve God, but I used to have something going every day of the week at times. I couldn’t say no because I felt I owed it to God to do all I could (He doesn’t want us to do things for Him out of guilt, but out of love). Between that and my job I was busy all the time. It was good to saturate myself with the things of God, but I needed more personal time with the Lord. It’s taken some time to trim things back a bit, but its working pretty good now and I even have some time to spare. It allows me to enjoy the peace that God has given me. Let’s face it, we overdue it with busy schedules and we stress and wear ourselves out. Even God took a day off to rest.
I guess what I’m saying is that, in my opinion, we need to budget time for God…and just God, but we don’t have to limit God. He can be a part of every minute of our day if we let Him. Yes we have busy schedules, but God is with us everywhere we go. Yes we run out of time, but God always has time for us. For everyone who makes God a priority in their life and gives Him the time He deserves, God has a wonderful gift. But if you busy yourself with the things of the world and put God after all the “wants” on your list, you will never experience that gift in your life.
Got time? Give it to God…He deserves it! ...It’s worth it!
No comments:
Post a Comment