Dec 3.97: Light For The day - "Not Enough Time For God"

If you have no time for God,
your time is being misspent. - Unknown 

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"I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I hope in thy words." 
-- Psalm 119:147 (RSV)

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"Not Enough Time For God"

Look out! Here comes one of those statements you
hate to hear from your parents, but I'm going to risk
saying it anyway. "Things sure were different when
I went to college!" Ugh! Doesn't that just make your
teeth hurt?

But it's true. You've got the Internet, a phone in
your room, and an answering machine. We had a
pay phone at the end of the hall.

You have to study the Vietnam War in history class.
We had to worry about fighting in it.

But one thing hasn't changed. You are under
tremendous time pressures. We were under
tremendous time pressures.

My daughter, Lisa, who is now a senior in college,
offers these up-to-date observations on the use of
time at school:

I had such a rude awakening as I entered college
my freshman year. Studies were overwhelming,
classes required discipline, and where would my
social life fit in? Now I look back as a veteran
senior, and I wonder why I was so overwhelmed.
Time pressures have gotten even worse!

This means that many times God gets pushed into
the "Do I have time?" part of my life. Devotions
come in irregular snatches. Even though I have a
stronger desire than ever before to spend time
alone with God, my dictatorial schedule keeps me
focused on studies, classes, and performing in
concerts and recitals. (I'm a music education
major.) 

To maintain focus, here are some questions I ask
myself:

Is my walk with the Lord suffering?

Do I set aside a specific time during the day to be
with Him?

Am I reading the Bible? 

As I look back, I realize that the only thing that
matters is my walk with Christ and what I've done
for Him. Sure, studies are important, but they
shouldn't come before my relationship with Christ.

--DB & LB

REFLECTION

- What time do I set aside each day to meet with the
Lord? What prevents me from meeting with Him? 

- How would I characterize myself? Extremely busy.
Moderately busy. Somewhat busy. Not busy at all.
At which of these levels am I free from an obligation
to spend time with God? 

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"Very early in the morning, while it was still dark,
Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a
solitary place, where he prayed."
-- Mark 1:35 (NIV)-

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