CONCERT OF PRAYER

Pray Week 876

“Taking Time”

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (James 2:14-17)

I will never forget the time I stopped at a mall on my way home from church one Sunday to shop for a winter coat. The sermon that morning dealt with taking the time to care about other people and to care enough to truly, actively listen to them.

A man I had seen at church on a few occasions was shopping the same coat rack as I was. I did not know his name so I greeted him with the generic ‘Hello, how are you doing?’ thinking that once pleasantries were exchanged I could go on about my business and get home for lunch – I was hungry.

The man proceeded to ‘dump his bucket’ telling me about all his trials and difficulties. It was then that the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart about what had been taught from God’s Word that morning and that this encounter was truly a divine appointment. We spent the next two hours at that coat rack talking, listening, praying, and sharing the truth of God’s Word as it applied to his circumstances.

It is good to be busy. It is not good to be too busy to nurture depth in our relationships with God and our fellow man. We are too busy when the unexpected, unplanned encounter with someone, family member or otherwise, is viewed as a disruption and a bother to our schedule. Jesus taught a parable about a Good Samaritan who took the time to care for someone’s needs where others had been too busy to be bothered and passed him by. He concludes this teaching with the command to ‘Go, and do likewise’ (Luke 10:25-37)

What relationships are you too busy to nurture? Do you find that your spouse, children, or other relatives and acquaintances are a bother to you on occasion? When the Holy Spirit prompts you with God’s call to action, do you ‘put Him on hold’ because you are too busy doing other stuff? You may be too busy doing a myriad of good things – but are they the right things to do at that time?

May the Holy Spirit speak to your heart how to live a balanced, full life with time to nurture and develop depth in your relationship with Jesus and all others in your circle of influence. For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven… (Ecclesiastes 3:1)