Sunday, March 20, 2011

Timely Pursuit

Time is such a precious commodity
in my daily life. When I plan out
what I need to accomplish in a day,
there never seems to be enough.
Yet I find myself frittering away what
seems to be vast amounts of it anyway.
And it seems that the things I care
about the most get sacrificed in the
face of either the urgent, the routine,
or the completely useless pursuits
that I practice. I must choose differently.


All your life is a choice. There is not a detail, no matter how insignificant it may seem that is not affected by the choices you make. Your investment of time, energy, or awareness regarding some facet of your life will determine your course, so you must choose well.

The time you spend with Me always bears fruit even when you don't see the direct results yourself. Your prayers for your family, friends, church, community, and world are investments that cannot be measured. It is good to sit alone and quietly turn your heart to Me in fellowship and petition and to hear My voice speak to you through My word. The advantage of quiet is there are fewer distractions. In your daily life there is so much noise. However, I am no less present in the busiest parts of your day. You forget that I am with you, and a part of you can come to Me in the midst of all other activities. While I would want you to continue in active pursuit of Me, I would not have you make an idol of your devotion or spiritual habits.

Because so much clamors for your attention, you have to be very deliberate to turn your mind and heart to Me. Mastering this ability is less a feat accomplished by your power and more an active work of My Holy Spirit within you. Instead of a battle it is a relinquishment. You must surrender your ideas, plans, agendas, and focus. You are not the center of your world. Your family is not the center of your world. Your work is not the center of your world. Your health is not the center of your world. Your leisure is not the center of your world. That place is reserved for Me. I purchased it with My blood and you have already given up ownership. So stop coming back and trying to force your way into a place that doesn't belong to you anymore. I know what I'm doing. I will do all things well.

Abandon the trivial and mindless things that steal your time and energy. Turn it off. Walk away. Flee if need be. Let your mind be filled with living thoughts, thoughts that are worthy of My participation. It is necessary for your mind to focus on your task, but still possible for you to be aware of My presence at any time. I am the life force behind all that you undertake, and as I fill you with My Spirit that life flows over through all that you set your hand to do.

Pursue Me above all else, but don't think only in terms of time spent and forms practiced. Think in terms of dependence, humility, surrender, trust, obedience, virtue, hope, patience, kindness, honor, love, joy, and peace. I will fill all the days and times of your life with value, purpose, strength, and vision.


Psalm 90:12; Psalm 46:10; Matthew 6:6-8; Matthew 6:25; Philippians 4:4-9;
Psalm 90:17; John 4:14



3 comments:

Nancy Sorensen said...

Thanks for the invitation to your blog that I saw on Facebook! I love the way you write; God has gifted you, indeed.

Your sentence in today's blog about not making our QT, etc into spiritual idols reminded me of something I read in "Holy Habits, A Woman's Guide to Intentional Living": "Holy Habits are daily spiritual habits that help us transcend our circumstances and keep our focus on God. Our part is to make it a habit to know Him. His part is to make us holy. ...Holiness is the result of the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. The habit is simply a vehicle that allows God to change us." It is so easy to start thinking of QT and prayer, etc as the end goal in themselves when they are merely tools God uses to communicate with us and to build us into the people He wants us to be.

This is terribly wordy - you don't need to post it on the site! I just wanted to say thank you for sharing. God spoke to me today through you!

Luann said...

Thanks for your input, Nancy! You are so right...it is important to leave spaces in our lives for God to work. Thanks for checking in here!

Kelli said...

I like this one a lot mom!