Thursday, November 6, 2008

Time Keeps On Ticking Into The Future

Our struggle with time continues. There was a point in my life, not long ago, when I was able to complete my To Do list. This year my daily To Do list seems to be an impossibility, requiring many days to complete my work for a one day list. I have a sense that God has shortened the days instead of prolonging them for me.

Obviously this is an illusion because our God established the length of a day from the beginning of time. It was only on a couple of occassions this changed and it was for a very specific reason. I do not believe God is going to accomodate my busyness in this manner. What we do with the time God has allotted us is an important matter that should be considered carefully. Yet, I must do something more than just long for those quiet moments when we hear God's voice pulling at us, "Be still and know that I AM God." (The emphasis on the great I AM is mine.) We must do something to accomodate our need.

It is amazing how two items on my To Do can take my entire day. I tried to figure out why and really it s only today that I realize what does it. They are all those little time stealers, the things that are too small to include on a To Do list. They are things like the spilled soup that needs to be cleaned up, the unexpected phone call, the late bus. In time management they tell you to expect such things by building in empty spaces in our day. These empty spaces are meant to absorb these time thieves. The problem comes when we crowd our To Do's without considering the unexpected. We can't do anything about a late bus. With time buffers we will avoid frustrations but with a crowded To Do we will feel like we are about to have a heart attack.

At least I have a To Do list, I only need to remember to spread out my tasks over more days. I feel bad for those people who try to live without a list. I guess non-busy people would not need lists but others certainly need them. If you are feeling overwhelmed, lost, confused, stressed then I strongly recommend learning how to use a To Do. But on that To Do list book in those quiet moments so you will not crowd out the Father who longs for one of the things we consider most precious to us; time.

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