Diary Entry 27: Give God Your Time
Our time is one aspect in our lives we struggle to give because of the demands we have in society. Society takes our time for itself to feed the worries of life and to keep us in the rat-race.
If we are not busy doing things, then we are busy worrying about the things we need or ought to do. We have given most of our time to the god of the world and God is calling us to trust Him by giving Him our time.
However, many of us second guess and calculate whether we should obey or not, by how it affects us or how it will benefit us. As I was listening to Elisabeth Elliot today, something stuck with me – the result is up to God; it is our part to only obey.
I wonder how much confusion and frustration will clear up if we stopped compromising, only keeping our eyes on obeying and not on the result.
Many have been called into the home, a place where time can be allocated to God, however even here the distractions lure us away. God is saving us from those distractions, so we can continue to give our time to Him.
Distractions may come in various forms, whether it be financial, relational or other demands… but its all the same… they are distractions that steal the time you could be giving to the Lord (to flow into His Spirit and not of the world’s). Scripture says that to sow into the flesh is death, but to sow into the Spirit is life. Yet under which spirit are we flowing and submitting all our attention to?
It is here that we intentionally have to step away from the pull of other ‘flows’ that are squeezing the life out of us, and intentionally distract ourselves to what is at hand. For the kingdom is at hand, right here and now, so we can end all idleness by putting our time and hands at a thing that God has given us to do behind closed doors.
It is in this time that seeds are being planted and watered to grow you into the plans and purposes He has for you. He is a jealous God, and He only wants His blessings to be in full fruition in your life.
Give Him your time by seeking the kingdom first, trusting that He will take care of your concerns. Yet the enemy steals our growth through these worries and distractions as we withhold our time from God, and waste away by means of idleness, social media, and the likes.
Since the Lord loves you, He calls you into intimacy with Him. He loves you, so He calls you out of other distractions, not to destroy you, but to rather discipline and ‘life’ you up.
It may have seemed to Daniel that His devotion to God was going to destroy him, but instead he kept his faith, not calculating the cost, and God delivered Him.
Maybe giving your time to God, stepping away from things that are consuming you, may feel like it is going to cause persecution or other problems, but your time given to God are seeds of kingdom in your life that are growing to your benefit.
Giving God your time will quieten your soul to His wisdom and patience you need in your life. As God reveals to you how He values your time with Him, you will begin to value, not only the time with Him, but the time needed for the assignments God is giving you.
When we are tempted to give up on our assignments because we refuse to give him the time, or it is not happening fast enough, this may lead us to unequal yokes or to mess up the plans. Time with God will root us in patience and grow in us a love for the time needed for the assignments.
He will begin to grow a love in you for the assignments He has given you in the midst of the worldly rush and demands. However, when we begin to yoke with worldly time frames, we will abandon our assignments.
If you have been lost, intimidated, or even trapped by the external, take a vacation from the world, including social media, or a begin a fast; reset, and you will begin to appreciate the time He is asking of you, and He will give so much back to you.
Keep the faith.
