Taking
the Time not Finding the Time
I’m sure you are aware
of this fact: time slips away very fast. Another year is ending and a
new one is upon us. This
year has gone by so fast it doesn’t seem possible it’s over already.
Time is a very important commodity; second by second it ticks
away, never to be recovered. We
all have the same amount of it; everyday has 24 hours for everyone.
Making good use of time
has everything to do with priorities.
If we are going to get the important things accomplished they
must become the things we do before all other things crowd in around us
and clamor for our attention. Setting
proper priorities and following through by accomplishing them takes
determination.
Jesus gives us a great
example. He was faced with
similar challenges. As we
look at how Jesus prioritized His time, we can learn how to make the
most of ours.
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. Simon and his
companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they
exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
(Mark 1:35-37 NIV).
In this passage, it’s
clear that Jesus arranged His life with God as the priority.
Jesus didn’t find the time to meet with God; He took the time to meet with God.
God was His main focus. Meeting
with the Father was on the top of His to-do-list. Everything was planned around His time with the Father.
Jesus prayed first thing in the morning before the pressures of
ministry began. We also
read that after a busy day of ministry He met with God again.
After he
had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.
When evening came, he was there alone
(Matt. 14:23 NIV).
In
the morning before His day started He met with God to pray.
In the evening after a busy day of ministry, He met with God
again to pray. Jesus was
focused on the Father’s will (all this without a Daily Planner or a
Palm Pilot to “fit” God into His schedule).
My
prayer is that we live our lives with God as our priority in 2006.
As we begin to prepare for the coming year there are going
to be very important challenges we will all face.
As a church, we are committing to meet with God in His Word daily
and then coming together @ 6:00 pm Sunday evenings to encourage and pray
together. This will require taking the time not finding the time.
We are also starting the Core Seminars @ 9:30 am on Sunday
mornings; this will also require precious time and determination.
I believe that as we focus on God by taking the time to read His
Word, to pray, and to meet together we will be drawn closer and closer
to Him. Our relationship with the Father will grow stronger.
He will be even more glorified in our lives.
Bigelow Church will be more and more a church that honors Christ.
So this year, I want to encourage everyone don’t find the time
to meet with the Lord, take the time to meet with the Lord.
Will we as a church grow closer to the Lord this year?
I hope the answer is yes. Oh
and by the way… only time will tell.
Pastor Brian
