Making Time
Spiritual Endurance, Spiritual Growth August 26th, 2008
Mark 1:35
In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.
A look at our society today in America shows that we are a bag of contradictions. One of the most amazing ones to me is how we have so many things that are faster now, and yet the faster things go the less time we have. We have fast food, we have microwaveable dinners, and even pre-made easy to cook meals. All of these things are meant to make life easier and more efficient. The preparing and cooking a meal can be cut down from the couple of hours of yesteryear to as quickly as even five minutes. You would think that this gives us more free time. And yet, with the convenience we find ourselves having more we can do and thus more we feel obligated to do.
The problem with our society being so busy is that many times people do not take time to be with God. To be a Christian requires true devotion. Take Jesus for example. If there was anyone who could do without the spiritual blessings that accompany prayer (stronger faith, etc.) it would be Jesus. He was God after all. And yet here we see that he takes away from His busy schedule of healing and teaching to go and spend time with God. We need to share a similar devotion ourselves. If Jesus needed prayer, we need it more so.
Often times we claim that we are too busy to make time to pray or study. Yet that excuse shows us where our priorities lie. If there is something really important in our lives, we schedule time for it in advance. We need to do the same with our time with God. Time with God is vital to living a strong Christian life. It is also important to help make the relationship grow. Even Jesus understood that. What better excuse could there be to not go out to pray but to say, “Look I healed people and taught them about God, thought should suffice as my spirituality for today.” Instead He understood that His time with His father was more important than those other things. We too should understand this lesson for our lives today.
In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.
August 26th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Our priorities should definetely lie within our spiritual lives. We need to do our best to give 100% to God even if it means giving up some things that we love. Thanks for the thoughts!
August 26th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
It all comes down to what is truly important and more important. I could do without watching that T.V. show or playing that video game or going to the movies to go visit a widow or to take some food to one who has just had surgery or to read the book of Titus to grow in my relationship with my Lord! Thanks for reminding me of this!
August 26th, 2008 at 9:18 pm
This is such a powerful thought!! Sometimes with the world as it is…..other things creep into our lives and before we know it God seems to be the first to be set aside. This is NOT the way it should be. We need to remember HOW important God is and put HIM back where HE belongs….first in our lives. Thanks again for the reminder. It is my prayer that I can take these words to heart and remember where God fits into my life.