If you’re like me – and chances are, if you’re reading this, you are – then you wear a multitude of hats on any given day. For those unfamiliar with the analogy I simply refer to the various responsibilities we each have. I have my day J.O.B., run my own business, am trying to launch a new career as a writer (how am I doing?), I’m a financial counselor for my church, have family responsibilities, house and home duties, Bible study and prayer time. I somehow need to squeeze in friends and, perhaps maybe, just a little down time for myself. As I write this I am thinking of additional hats I wear, but for now I think you get the picture. The world has become a crazy busy place, and it is nearly impossible to not play along.
My dilemma, beyond the obvious, is how little time there is for God. I suspect most of us struggle with this. One fact we cannot escape from is the fact that the amount of time we make for God is totally up to us, a choice, plain and simple. I think it is a subtle and brilliant plan of Satan to continually add to the busyness of our lives. Is it merely coincidence that the busier we have gotten as a nation, the further we as a people have drifted from God? Satan’s best moves are indeed the subtle ones. He rarely uses blatant tactics, but rather takes something inherently neutral, perhaps even helpful, and twists it ever so slightly in a manner that takes our focus off of God.
Having a job, pursuing your passion and serving others are all worthy tasks. But when they start piling one on top of the other, what are the first things that get squeezed out? I think more often than not, God is the first to go in our busy schedule. After all He’ll love us regardless and He knows how we feel about Him anyway, right? As a side note, the next thing that tends to get removed from our schedules is exercise. Soon we become flabby and depressed and focused totally on our appearance rather than on God and the needs of others. Satan wins; he has removed our focus from God and that is all he wants to do. The easiest way to save money is to pay yourself first and pay your bills with what’s left. Might I propose the best way to serve God with your time is to spend the first hour of your day with Him? Take care of everything else with the time you have left. We need to guard our lives from becoming too busy. We need to recognize the subtle ploys of Satan. When it comes to spending our time, we need to pay God first.