Slow Down and Live in the Moment

Tags

Christmas, december, holidays, new year, season, time

As the saying goes, Time waits for no man, and every year that passes makes me more painfully aware of that fact. I remember the first year that I actually became aware of the time flying past me. It was the year of 2008, and at the end of it I realized for the first time what it feels like for time to fly by. Sadly, not a single year of my life since then has slowed down the smallest bit; instead, each successive year has flown by faster than the year before, and the year of 2016 was no exception.

Leap Day and the Reality of Time

Tags

dailyprompt, God, leap day, leap year, productive, time, time management

Photo Credit: Bing Image of the Day

I thought that today, being Leap Day, was just too good of an opportunity not to post something interesting. It’s a rare, once-in-a-blue-moon happening, although I sort of feel bad for the thousands of babies that will be born today, as well as the many unsuspecting guys who will be proposed to by their girlfriends.

Leap Year has always been sort of fascinating to me. I mean, we can actually give ourselves 24 extra hours than we normally would have in a year?? How cool is that!? Why don’t we do that more often? I know there is a specific reason for it, but it’s still interesting to me.

You know, if you really think about it, we aren’t actually getting any “extra” time. Pretty much all we’re doing is just switching the labels on the days. It’s a nice illusion, though.

However, technically, yes; as far as our social existence and daily life go, we are kind of getting an extra day on the calendar. So that made me do some thinking.

What am I going to do to make this extra day worth while? People always wish that they could have 26-hour days, because there just don’t seem to be enough hours in the day to do everything we want to do.

Well, guess what? Here it is, a whole bonus 24 hours, just plopped right into our laps. So what are we going to do with it?

So far, I’ve made an important phone call, finished editing pictures for a client, started uploading them to an online album, gone for a walk in this amazing spring-like weather, eaten lunch, and written a to-do list for the rest of the day. I also prayed this morning for God’s wisdom and leading to help me make this day the most productive it can be. Oh, and I’m also writing this post.

I think that’s a good start, but I don’t want to stop there.

I feel super motivated today to do my best at making every moment count. That’s awesome, but it also makes me wonder, Why am I not like this every day?

Every day, not just February 29th on Leap Year, is a special gift to me; twenty-four hours on loan by God for me to do whatever I wish with it. Time itself is a gift to mankind, something to help our existence have structure and organization. Even though God doesn’t need it, it sure comes in handy down here. And it’s something we should treasure and prioritize carefully.

Every ordinary day, every twenty-four hours, is just as valuable as a so-called bonus twenty-four hours that comes every four years. Because, to God, they’re all the same, each hour is no different from the next. He cares about how I spend my time no matter what label I might put on it.

So this Leap Day, I’m going to do my best at making the minutes count for something important, but I want to transfer that into my daily, ordinary life and make every minute of every day count.

 

Leap

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As always, thanks for reading!

Reflections on How Not to Waste My Time

Tags

God, joy, merciful, mighty, peace, priorities, purpose, rest, time

Photo Credit: myheartbelongstochrist | tumblr

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January 22nd. The end of the month is just 9 days away. Whether you realize it or not, we are already almost one-twelfth finished with this year, and it didn’t feel like it took that long at all, did it? It certainly didn’t for me. And the rest of the year is going to pass just as quickly.

I’ve been busy today and recent days thinking about stuff like what I’m going to be doing this summer, and that it’s my family’s dog’s birthday today, and that I really should clean out my closet, and trying to figure out the science of relationships (and failing miserably), and then all of a sudden I realized it.

This year is going by faster than last year. Faster than I ever imagined it could.

And what have I really done so far that’s worth mentioning? What have I done to further God’s kingdom here on earth? How have I impacted the lives around me? What have I done to cultivate and invest in my relationships with my family members? I hate to say it, but there are far fewer qualifying accomplishments in my life than I’d like.

Time passes so much more quickly than I really think. It’s so easy to let the moments slip by without really living. I can spend hours and days and weeks dreaming and planning my future out like clockwork, but then six months later I wake up and look back – and how much of that has actually come to pass? And how much of that time did I spend only planning things out instead of living them?

I hate the feeling of wasted time, of looking deep into my life and realizing that so much of what I’ve spent my time doing was useless. Just vanity and emptiness. I truly empathize with you, Solomon.

You’d think that feeling of regret would be enough to make me turn around and never waste another moment of my life; and yet, why is it so easy to see my mistakes, endeavor to change, and, a short time later, find myself wasting my time again?

I’ll tell you this, the pull of the world and the lies of the devil are so much stronger than we want to admit. That’s why an alcoholic or a drug addict or anyone struggling to be free from something is never going to get very far in their own strength. That’s why I’m never going to truly make something of my life, never wasting another moment of my life, in my own strength.

I have to have outside assistance. Who’s the only one strong enough to take a messed-up, full-of-regrets, up-to-this-point wasted life, and transform it into a life of purpose and hope and joy and peace? And how do I get to that point where He is the one leading and moving in every moment of my life so that it becomes a life of purpose and hope and joy and peace?

It is only by spending time with Him, instead of with Instagram; letting Him fill my heart with His plans and purposes, instead of Pinterest; saturating my mind with His words and truth instead of the world’s self-centered emptiness and the devil’s lies.

And how do I make that happen? Well, there’s definitely got to be a shift in priorities.

Yes, it’s hard to do, I know it from experience. But it is all worth it. With God in the forefront, life is never a waste.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

                                                Matthew 11:28-30

 

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P.S. And now I am telling myself to go and take my own advice. ‘Cause I so don’t have this together. S-o-o-o-o . . . don’t . . .

I’m thankful that I have a merciful and mighty God.

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If you are new to me or my blog, feel free to check out my About page and my Intro Post!

Thanks for visiting!