I can’t be saved; I can’t be lent. I can be wasted, and I can be spent. What am I? You probably guessed it—time. Time is something that is very difficult to manage, especially when it comes to following Jesus. One thing I have learned in my later years of life is that everything and everyone is competing for my time. We all have housework to do, but that means time away from the family. We all have sporting events or clubs to get the kids to, but that means being away from work at the house. The list goes on and on. Time is one thing we can never get back.
A pastor really challenged me this week. He said that the bigger the calling or the battle, the more time you should spend with God. Sometimes, we get stuck in our routines. We know God is calling us to something big, or we know we are struggling with something serious, but our time with God never increases. If we’re not careful, most of us will only take from the time allotted for the Lord in our busy schedules, and we typically never add to it.
In Luke 5:15-16, we see large crowds gathering and needing healing. They wanted Jesus to heal them. Now, here’s the crazy part: “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” What? There’s ministry to be done! There are things to do! He can’t just leave in the middle of a need like that. How could He refuse to heal people? This is what I first thought before I started dwelling on this and really looking at it. The more I read it, the more I realized that Jesus wasn’t refusing to heal; He simply was prioritizing His relationship with God.
What Jesus knew in this moment is that if He was being asked to do big things, then He needed to spend big time with God. He was setting an example for the rest of us. I encourage you to go back through the life of Jesus and look at either His most impressive miracles or the toughest moments of His life, and you will find that before, during, or after, He went and prayed. Usually, He prayed alone. Why would He want to be alone with God? Because that’s what best friends do—they spend time alone.
I’ve learned that when difficult things come my way, the last thing I want to do is worship or talk to God. I believe with all my heart that this is a spiritual attack. I can feel myself wrestle with wanting to be angry at God and run away from Him, yet at the same exact time, I
feel in my heart that He is exactly what I need in this moment. It’s like a tug-of-war, and I’m the rope.
A challenge that has helped me with this difficult lesson is recognizing the friendship Jesus offers. On Sunday, Pastor Devin talked about how Jesus calls us friends, not servants. If this is true—and I believe it is—then what if Jesus followed me around and ranked the
friendships in my life based on the time I invested in them? Who would God say is my best friend? Would it be Jesus? He wants to be my best friend, but would the time I spend reflect that He is mine? Or would it be Facebook? Xbox? Gardening, movies, TV, or the hundred other things that I give my time and attention to? Would the time report of my life reflect how I want to feel about Him? Sometimes, we try to convince ourselves that God will understand if I don’t spend time with Him today because there just isn’t enough time. This is true—there is not enough time—but when it’s a best friend, you make time. It’s a choice. I either choose to prioritize God and spend time with Him like Jesus did, or I choose to focus on the world and the things others say must be done right here and right now.
I want to encourage you today, if you are going through a difficult time, to get alone and spend time with God. I know it’s going to be a struggle and even hurt sometimes, but if you do, God always shows up. That’s when healing happens, that’s when wisdom is given, and that’s when minds are changed. If you have a big change coming up, I encourage you to spend big time with God. We cannot expect God to pour out big plans in 30 seconds or less. Diligently seek the heart of God, and He will grow your relationship closer.
