There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

Too busy to Pray?
Last week, I ran into the grocery store to purchase Halloween candy. Like many of you, I wanted to be ready to hand out treats to Spiderman, Sleeping Beauty, witches, goblins, and other creative characters kids decided portray.
In the store I not only found the Halloween candy display, but also the stacks of pie crusts for Thanksgiving and Christmas tree lights in a variety of colors. All of a sudden I felt the rush of the holidays crashing in on me. So much to do! Serious planning needs to take place and then the follow through. Remember to bake, cook, buy cards, send cards, decorate the house, buy gifts, invite people, work on the Christmas play, attend all the holiday events and still get on with my regular daily duties. This is the time I wish there were a few more hours in each day, but I know that is not going to happen.
Did you notice in the Ecclesiastes verse, the author (King Solomon) did not say there is time enough for everything? He just said there is a time for everything and a season in which it must take place. I’ve spent much time searching for a verse or a passage somewhere that would tell me how to get everything done, and the verse above is about as close as it gets. Yet, it is vague at best. There are so many things to do – where does it all end? And when?
Reading the verse again, I think we can find some valuable information! It says “There is A time for everything”, and for everything, there is its proper season. Perhaps that means that some of the things we find demanding the most attention and time commitments are things that are important, yet are not really as pressing as we might think to begin with. If each of us were to make a list of the things we have to get done today or tomorrow, I wonder how many of those seemingly urgent things actually could be rescheduled, deferred, or even, upon further contemplation, dismissed. Some say it is the squeaky wheel that gets the grease. This seems to imply that the person that yells the loudest over a task competing for our time is naturally the one who gets their way. But is that efficient or even logical? We all need to be in charge of our time. Prioritize the things that compete for our time and make choices based on real importance and urgency, and not just whoever (or whatever) is making the most noise. Above all, make time for ourself – and for God.
Paul gives us some really important clues in how to manage our affairs and our time. “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) I think that usually the first things to drop off the list when we get busy are joy, prayer, Sunday morning worship and giving thanks. Some of that may seem to make sense: our sense of joy tends to get lost when we are overbooked, and we seldom remember to take the extra time to give thanks when we get over stressed. And of course, other than a fleeting prayer uttered over the top of the steering wheel, our prayer life suffers when we are busy. BUT!!! Amazingly, when we remember to take joy in what we are doing, things seem to go so much smoother.
What if in our prioritization we discarded most of what we are not joyful about? That might make a difference. Give thanks in all circumstances. Remember how exceedingly well God has gifted us. Often when we do this, we will notice our joy returning and discover things really aren’t that bad after all.
Too busy to pray? Maybe, we are simply too busy NOT to pray.

On the Journey,
Cindy