Redeeming The Time

I've noticed that often when I ask friends how they are doing, the answer I get is "busy!" Don't we often sense a pressure from the many demands on our time? We have so many choices and a multitude of "good" things call to us, but we truly only have time for a few.

I've heard women's Bible teacher Beth Moore say that it's not wise to try to do too much. We are better off to choose one thing and just make that our focus. Resist the urge to spread yourself too thin. Be excellent at one or two well chosen life goals.

The Scriptures set this very principle forth as a command in Ephesians 5:15&16: "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil."
I want that for my life. I want to walk in wisdom, not foolishness. I want to be circumspect, cautious and intentional in my choices. I want to "redeem" or "buy back" my time, living in such a way that my life not only counts for temporal things, but those choices have eternal value as well.

So here's the question: How do I redeem my time? The life of Christ is my reference point. I look at how he budgeted his time while here on earth. I see right away that it was his habit to rise early and spend time in prayer with his Father. (Mark 1:35) I know he was no doubt tired from his long days of ministry, teaching and healing throngs of people. And yet he got up early. Out of that alone time with his Father came the wise choices that often seemed to go against the expectations of others. He drew wisdom and strength for each day from his time alone with God, and so can I.

I smile when I think of him overruling the disciples when they wanted to shoo the children away so he could spend time with the adults. He said "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." (Matt 19:14)
I think of his timing in the death of Lazarus, his conversation with the despised Samaritan woman at Jacob's well and his care for his mother as he was about to die on the cross . All of these situations show our Savior making wise choices and "finishing the work" that his Father had given him to do. Never once do we read of his turning someone away with  the words "Can't you see I'm busy here!" How unthinkable! What a remarkable Savior we have!

When I purpose to begin each day by spending even a few precious minutes in God's presence, I am setting the tone for that day and redeeming the time I have been given. It is my desire that when my time on earth is up, I will meet my Savior and know that I have finished the work he had for me to do. After all, as someone once said, "The thing about life is that it is so daily!"

Put The Kettle On

I do enjoy a cup of steaming hot black tea. I take mine with a splash of milk, British style. Since I was a youngster, I've welcomed the call to "put the kettle on" knowing that it would be followed by the steeping and pouring of my favorite hot beverage. In New Brunswick, Canada, the maritime province where I was born, the cold winters bring plenty of reasons for visiting over a good cup of tea. The mild summers make tea drinking a year round practice. Even though I now live in the steamy South, thanks to air-conditioning, I drink hot tea even in the months of July and August.

At sixty years of age, I realize that there is much more to be appreciated here than just consuming tea. It would seem to me, that the very ritual of setting out cups & saucers, milk & sugar and the tea pot, (covered with a "tea cozy"), literally "sets the table" for a valued face to face visit with a friend or loved one. We stop and take the time to invest in one another, even if it's just for ten or fifteen minutes. It's a way of saying "Come, sit, and let me give you my undivided attention while we sip our tea." That is a rare thing in this era of cell phones and text messages!

Just yesterday, my eighty-two year old mother was wistfully observing : "You're never really alone with anyone these days! You don't have the pleasure of some one's undivided attention anymore. There's a constant stream of interruptions with messages that must be read and answered right away!"

I know exactly what she means. The urgent intrudes on nourishing relationships. "Just let me get this" is the antithesis of "Come, sit here with me, and let's catch up over tea!"

This blog will be my invitation to you to explore topics that will edify and refresh, much like a well-brewed cup of tea. Often, the best way to "redeem the time" is to stop multi-tasking and just be still. We'll consider truths from God's Word that we can take back with us into our fast-paced day. It will be a reminder of God's presence with us.

 So I invite you...come join me. You can easily imagine me at my computer with my favorite hot drink.