I Don't Have Time

             It has been a very busy week in my household. One thing after another, trying to catch up with this project, trying to keep plates spinning, trying to find time to rest and sit before my Lord has been the most difficult of all. It just seemed like the more I tried to find time to be with my Jesus, the less time I actually found. Isn’t that just the way it goes sometimes? But, even through all the hustle and bustle, as I did find time to sit and be still, I heard the voice of my Savior teaching me and showing me that time with Him doesn’t always have to be so set in stone.

                You see, I am a borderline Obsessive Compulsive Woman. I like things in their place, in a certain order, at certain times, and I tend to get a little anxious when ciaos comes. I have had a set time of devotion with my Jesus for years. My children know that from the hours of 7:00a.m and 9:00a.m. Mom is in her zone, and I do not like to be disturbed. My husband, he is the only one that I really allow to interrupt me, but even he knows that I like those hours to be set aside for Jesus. But this week, between the hours of 7 and 9 my life was in a disrupted state. This caused me to become a little anxious, but then the Lord spoke to me and showed me that it’s not about the amount of time spent with Him, it is about spending time with Him.

                “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32

              

  To abide means to remain and to dwell, it means to stay somewhere for a period of time. For me, my “abiding” time was in the mornings, but this past week the Lord showed me that abiding in Him doesn’t only mean setting aside time with Him, it means that I take advantage of all the time that I do get with Him. Life will cause us to become distracted; there is no way around it. Children, family, appointments, life in general will drain us of time. But to abide in Him means that we take what we can get and we dwell in it. We embrace it with our hearts, we let His word sink into us and become a part of us. To truly abide in Christ means that we open our hearts to Him and let Him pour into us, whenever and however He can.

                I want to be a disciple of Christ; I want to follow Him all the days of my life. I want to be a “Mary” and not always a “Martha”. In years past some of the hours I have spent with Him have been the best of my life, but when it can’t happen in the hours I have set aside, I have to realize that it is okay. He is not waiting for me, looking down at His watch, tapping it wondering where I am, because our scheduled appointment is upon us. No, He is waiting for me to open my heart to Him, wherever I am at and to listen to what He wants to say to me. Our devotion time does not have to be a set time every day. Our devotion time can happen anywhere and at any time of any day.

                The time I spend with Jesus isn’t about how many minutes I get to spend; it is about what I get while I spend the time with Him. It is about my heart, and how devoted to Him I am at that moment. When I was a mom of two young children, the hustle and bustle of their busy schedules kept me on my toes. Sometimes I was able to get in an hour of study and devotion and prayer, other days I was lucky if I could get a verse in. Some days it was reading my bible before bed, and falling asleep half way through the chapter because I was exhausted.  It wasn’t about the amount of time that I spent, it was about how I spent that time He had given me.

                As this week progressed and the hours of 7 and 9 passed quickly by, I realized that all I needed to do was ask Him to carve out some of my day. So I did. I opened my heart and told Him that I prayed for time each day, no matter the amount, just to open up some time for Him and me to be together. What I noticed was that when I allowed my heart to be open to Him, in whatever time slots we could find, He was able to move things around, make appointments change, make distractions go away, and He and I could finally get some time together. Some days it was in the late mornings, other days it was late in the afternoon, but it was still time together.

              

  I guess what I am trying to get across to all of us who read this blog today, is that we cannot put limitations on our devotion time with Him. Your days may be filled with crazy schedules, children who need constant attention, or perhaps you just have too many plates spinning at once. It is not about the amount of time we spend with Jesus each day; it is about spending time with Him. When we choose to abide in Him, He promises that we will be His disciples, and that the truth will set us free. We will be free from distractions, free from ties that bind us, free from sin and free to be with Him in whatever way He desires. Free to spend time with Him, for He is the author of time, He can make it happen if we are willing.

                I hope this all makes sense to you, because to be honest, my day is getting busier and my time is getting shorter. My devotion time may not come today until late in the afternoon, or it may only be the time I have in the car as I drive here and there. Jesus wants to spend time with us; He wants our full attention while we are with Him. If we want that as well, then all we have to do is ask Him to make a way, and He will. The heart is the issue, if we want to be in a time of study and prayer, then all we have to do is ask for Him to make the time, and He will. He did for me this past week. He opened up time for us to be together, and He will for you to. Take the time that you can, and allow Him to pour into you wherever and whenever possible.

                God is outside of time, and we cannot put limitations on the time we spend with Him. Give Him what you can, and let Him take care of the rest. May the Lord God give each of us a heart to spend time with Him, not just in word, but in quiet study and devotion to Him. May we all have a heart that seeks to abide, wherever and whenever we can. May the Lord God set us free from distractions and life itself that steals our time, and make a way for us all to be at His feet, in total and complete devotion to Him. To Jesus Christ be the glory and power forever and ever. Amen and Amen.