Saved In Sin City

Deuteronomy 1:18 (NIV version)
And at that time I told you everything you were to do.

There is a saying that time is money; for years I always viewed that saying as a mere cliché, but as I grow older I realize that there’s much truth in that statement. When we choose to make time for something, we are showing that we support that cause. Time is like money because our efforts bring value in our lives due to our focus on that subject.

Time has a value, and if we aren’t careful it can slip away never to be regained once more. I’ve learned this as a parent, when I see my daughter grow and change into a pre-teenager. I often wonder where the time has gone and now my once little baby is now looking me in the in the eye and in time I’ll have to look up at her once she grows to her predicted height of 6 feet & 2 inches. Time is a powerful factor, it can change things in a positive or a negative way, it all depends on what we devote our time to. My Mom used to say, that if you really want to do something, you’ll find the time for it or rather you’ll make the time for it.

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Yes, He has plans for us but if we don’t make the time to get to know him or about him, then we rob ourselves of this future because we miss out on the potential of this powerful connection with him. Time is of an essence when it comes to our relationship with the Lord, and it’s something that is definitely worth making the sacrifice. When we make the effort to spend time in prayer, bible study, or communion with him we are saying that “I choose to get to know you better because I value you and I want you in my life.”

Lately, I’ve made the decision to humble myself and let God help me manage my time because I waste it so much. So many of my activities were about quantity rather than quality and I was keeping busy just for the sake of being a busy person because I wanted to look busy and feel as if I was doing something. I’ve been blessed because in my idle time I now see that some of the things I was filling my time with weren’t bearing the fruit that I needed for my growth, so I’ve asked Him to give me a spirit of discernment so I can find the people, places and things in my life that nurture me and to help me take control of my time so that I can enjoy these blessings.

For the past few months I’ve been making more of an effort to show God that I want to make time for him and the results have been immensely satisfying for me. I’ve been doing more writing and studying. I had a conversation with my Cousin which revealed some things to me. I participated in a Woman’s Conference where the speaker’s message resonated with me to the point that I swore that God definitely was telling me what he needed me to hear and I was lead to a book that is helping me overcome some issues in my past. I also have been starting to get out of my loner mode and am starting to take more time to talk to the people that I love more often, especially God. Our conversations are starting to be much more meaningful and many more things are starting to fall into place; projects that I had procrastinated on started to come together and many more wonderful things are starting to bear results for me. We live in a world where everything is at a rapid pace, and we tend to take that approach sometimes with God as we say a quick prayer or dash out; however, taking the time to be with him as sincerely as we can does make a difference not only in our lives but in others as well.