MAKING TIME FOR GOD

Even the most dedicated disciples of Christ often find themselves so caught up in the hustle and bustle of living, that they have less and less time for Bible study and spiritual reflection.  Our pathetic numbers on Sunday and Wednesday evenings reflect this dilemma dramatically.  Parents abdicate their sacred leadership responsibilities while the children grow more secular than spiritual, often mimicking their guardians’ behavior.  How do we correct this deficit in our lifestyles?  Here are a few suggestions:

Take time to be holy.  This isn’t merely a sacred song; it is a mandate from God.  It was no accident that Yahweh rested on the seventh day after the creation (Sabbath actually means “rest”).  He has clearly asked us to take a day off for reflection and rest.  Keeping a special day for worship and study and personal inventory is healthy and necessary.  J. C. Penney once said that if a man is too busy to worship God on the Lord’s Day, he is just plain too busy.

Seize the open doors given by God.  Listen for the voice of God in daily conversation.  Look for opportunities to share your faith and the good news of Calvary to those who drop hints that they are seeking the truth.  People won’t grab us by the lapels and beg us to tell them the story of Jesus, but they will allow their hearts to be tenderly open at times, and we need to be sensitive to those moments so we can minister to them and come closer to God in the process.

I have never felt closer to God than when I am deeply involved with helping someone in their quest for divine guidance.  If we do not stay in tune to the promptings of others, we will miss door after door and window after window of precious moments to lead others to the God of all hope.

Learn to be quiet.  We are bombarded by so much noise on any given day that we become numb to the beauty of silence.  We turn the radio on immediately when we get into the car.  We grab the remote and begin the channel surfing process the moment we hit the door of our homes. Noise pollution is drowning out our abilities to hear any semblance of a still, small voice.  If God ever spoke to our hearts via the Holy Spirit, we might easily miss it for the surrounding decibel levels that incessantly overwhelm us.

We cannot always control the noises around us, but we can turn down the volume of our inner spaces The Lord is still in His holy temple and the earth must learn to keep silence before Him. Even as I write, a driver has his car radio blasting away with music that literally shakes the windows of my study, making it all the more difficult to find the silence I seek.

With tinnitus ringing in my ears, even when I am alone in my prayer closet, I cannot fully stop the noise, yet when surrounded by the world’s odious cacophony, we can learn to create a spirit of solemnity and quiet holy communion with our God.

Learn to say no and mean it.   We haven’t enough time to volunteer for every project that comes to our attention.  Often we are drafted to do things that we do not have time or talent for.  It is not a sin to say no to things your heart or your mind simply cannot bear.

Much of the difference between a $10 million baseball pitcher in the majors and a $20,000 pitcher in the minors is simply follow-through.  Don’t be embarrassed to decline some work that you cannot do adequately. This will leave more time and energy for a closer proximity to God.

Learn to sleep.  A former acquaintance used to get by on three hours of sleep each evening.  He was a workaholic.  He was success driven.  He counted his personal worth by his achievements in the business world. Bragging that he would be wealthy by the age of 40, he died of a massive heart attack at 38.

Everybody needs a healthy body, and healthy bodies require fuel and rest. An automobile wouldn’t last long if it was driven non-stop.  It isn’t a sign of laziness to get adequate sleep. Most normal people need at least seven to eight hours of rest every 24 hours in order to remain alert and healthy.

The media has persuaded us that we need to stay up late and watch slime-time television and then the late news.  We would be much better off to sleep more and miss what Hollywood has to offer. I know that some of my best conversations with God are when I am in repose upon my bed.  Yawn.   Stretch.   Blessed be the name of the Lord.

—By Steven Clark Goad
“Reprinted with permission, Gospel Advocate”