FOOD FOR THOUGHT
(03/08/2009)
“CHANGE
THE CLOCK!”
Cindy Hong
Olivia,
my 3-year old niece, was born with a procrastination gene. Every night
just before bed, she can't wait to polish her repertoire of stall tactics.
Hunger pangs suddenly strike. Thirst quickly follows. She has perfected
the order, so potty time is next. You can imagine her being in total control
there. Getting her teeth brushed by mom inspires her to do the hula dance,
wiggling away another couple of minutes. She displays infinite patience
choosing her two bedtime stories. Her current favorite transitional object
is a red cow, and given all the hiding places, it could take another few
minutes to round up Bessie. During our last visit, her mom gave us 10
more minutes to play before going to bed. They quickly passed and a voice
called out from the kitchen, “Livy, bedtime!” “NOOOOOO!” The
mom came in and they negotiated one more minute. Here's the conversation
that followed:
Me:
Okay, Livy, Mommy gave us another minute to play. What do
you want to do?
Livy:
Change the clock.
Atta
girl. But as we know from just losing an hour, the clock keeps ticking
and waits for no one. Not even Jesus. When His time came, He resolutely
set his face toward Jerusalem and to His fate on the cross. His life teaches
us how to spend our days, making time and space for Sabbath rests, slowing
down during Lent, preparing our hearts for Good Friday and Easter. And
as His disciples, we are never just “on the clock,” when we worship
or attend Sunday School, read our Bibles or listen to the New Testament.
We are never just on the clock, and yet we are always on the clock if
we are truly serious about following Him 24/7, not a part-time or weekend-only
disciple. Even if we stall the growth process with our busyness and addictions,
excuses and half-heartedness, God also displays infinite patience with
us. He is not in a rush to form us and will take the necessary time to
make us like His Son Jesus. So may we take time this week to pause and
ask Him to help us make the most of our days, filling them with His agenda
and His action items.
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