Time is ticking away, tick-tick-ticking away!

In another mini-confessional, I must say that I have a lifelong struggle with time. And really, who doesn't? We are either at odds with it, never using it wisely, wasting it on frivolities...or we think we have mastered it...never late for anything, planning and planning to save it by being better-organized and mapping our routes to save five minutes since we're missing that traffic light or railroad track.

But what if time is not at our disposal at all? What if it isn't even OURS to waste or to master? How about instead of fighting it, pushing against it, and even looking back at it with regret or feelings of success...we give it to the Lord.

The Lord told me pretty clearly recently that "All of your time is Mine."

To which I inwardly replied, "Excuse me?"

And the impression came again, "It ALL belongs to ME."

Not just the wee times I carve out for prayer, reading, singing, giving...but every minute of every day is HIS.

What does this even mean? I'm still trying to work that out with Him. It mostly means that I am listening to Him and relying on Him to let me know how to best use my minutes and hours. If it's His, He can certainly direct me on how to use it. In the process, I become less frustrated with my failure to master it...and less willing to waste it on things that will not further my mind, heart, and His Kingdom. He will allow time for rest. He will not allow for impatience, because that usually involves my heart being at unrest with someone else seemingly "wasting" my time or energy. Letting my time belong to Him will reduce frustration with traffic lights, slow people, long meetings, never-in-a-hurry husband, and a whole host of other things that seem to put me in a tailspin of evil. And may I disclaimer while I'm here (yes, I did just make disclaimer a verb, sue me)...I attempt to be ON TIME to events where there are other people because it is a community-minded thing to do. It is out of love for one another that we respect each other's time as THEIR gift from God, too.

And in the words of that wise Dan Wilson, "Whatcha gonna spend your free life on?"