Good morning, Making Space for God community! Today I want to share with you a guest post from Mark Andrews, a friend and Drawing Near to God Board of Directors member. Mark’s post, “Time is Short” reminds us, especially during this busy season, about the importance of using our time wisely, and using it to make space for God. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Time is short…. use it wisely!
If we examine how we spend our time, a pattern will emerge. And that pattern will speak volumes about your priorities, what is truly most important to you.
Some years back Charlie and I were enjoying a lazy Saturday afternoon in downtown Charleston. We had lunch and were just randomly checking out the shops on King St. when it dawned on me that it was the first Saturday in September. Not only was it the first Saturday of the college football season but it was the opening day of dove season. These past-times that had dominated so much of my thought and time for years had slipped my mind! I was shocked and delighted at the same time. How could things that had held such a high priority in my life since childhood simply slipped my mind. In that moment I knew that something rather monumental in me had changed.
Please don’t get me wrong. I believe it is healthy to have activities, hobbies, about which we are passionate. I have many. And I cherish the memories I have built over the years hunting and fishing and playing with family and friends. Yet, in that moment on King St. with my dear wife, I realized that there had been a shift in my priorities. Something had changed in my life.
We live in a time and place where we are bombarded by good things vying for our attention, commitment and resources. Charlie and I certainly thought that by this season of our life we would have fewer demands on our time. Boy were we mistaken. We are blessed with many great friends whose company we enjoy. We like to work out and eat out and play. We have responsibilities to our clients and, of course, each other. We are actively involved in several areas of ministry in our church and small groups. And we still try to get in front of a screen on fall Saturdays to cheer on our Gamecocks. And we are often left kinda exhausted, tapped out. I’m saying this because I bet your life is much the same.
So what’s the point? First, we need to examine how we are spending the precious time God has given us. As I have grown older, the days and weeks seem to more rapidly melt into years. And, while I try not to look back too critically, I know that I have not always been a good steward of the time God has given me on this earth. Too many of my days were totally focused on me, my agenda, rather than on God and others. Rather than intentionally advancing His purposes in my life, I was totally focused on advancing my purposes. That day on King St years ago was encouraging as it signified to me that an important change had happened in my heart.
The more important point I want to make is that God has spoken to us about how we are to spend our days, how we are to prioritize the time He has given us.
At Matthew 6:33, we hear Jesus speaking to this very matter. He says, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.”
Scripture has many other references to prioritizing our time. Every passage emphasizes putting the pursuit of God first. God’s Word tells us the amazing things that happen when we put Him first, when we seek Him. These are just some of God’s promises to those who seek Him with all their heart……
They will not be in want of any good thing!
They will be rewarded!
They will live!
And, they will find Him!
So I challenge each of you today to take stock of how you are using your time. Trust that one day time as we know it will cease to exist and we will each be held accountable for how we spent the precious moments of our life.
And as you examine how you have prioritized your life thus far, ask God to reveal what He wants you to see, what He is trying to teach you.
Are you so busy with the other important demands for your time that you can’t commit to regular involvement in a small group of believers? Or perhaps you are so exhausted that even regular Sunday church attendance is difficult. Do you make time in your schedule to regularly read and meditate on God’s Word? Are you spending consistent time with our Heavenly Father in prayer?
My prayer for myself and each of you is that we will use God’s gift to time in this life wisely. I pray that we will make seeking God our life’s top priority. Do this and all the other truly important things will be yours. That’s God’s promise to each of us.
My friends, time is short and what we do with what time we have left has consequences both in this earth and in eternity.
Let’s steward the gift of time well!
