Our Time is Flatlining

I feel like at the beginning of almost every post, I apologize for not having written for a while. That's probably because, every time, I haven't written for a while. However, to mix things up a bit, this time I am completely unapologetic for not having written. I'm sure you've all been on the edge of your seats, checking this blog every five minutes in desperate hope that there would be a new word, but you've been frustrated for the last week and a half. Get over it.

Anyhways. life has been going along. Classes are picking up a bit as far as work and stuff go. I had a seminar this weekend about ministry through small groups that was really good. I imagine I'll write more about that later. I'm poor and need a job. And the ladies are all up ons. But I digress...

Mark Moore said something in my Life of Christ class last week that I thought was really good, and it's been mulling around in my head for a while. We were talking about Jesus' interaction with the Sabbath laws. Mark was talking about the need for sabbath in the life of the Christian, and how resting actually prepares us to do the work we need the rest of the time. The line that I particularly liked was: "Every day, there's enough hours in that day to do what God has called you to do."

I feel busy a great deal of the time. And thus, I feel stressed out, especially when we get into the trenches of the semester when all the term papers and tests and book reports and everything else are due. And I think, "If only there were like, 30 hours in a day, that'd be great. Then I'd have no trouble getting everything done." But I don't have 30 hours a day. I have 24. And my job is to use that time to its maximum potential to accomplish what God has lined for me in that day.

What that means is that I can't afford to waste time the way that I do. Over the past week, I've been thinking about just how much of my day is like a vacuum, totally devoid of anything useful. I'll walk into my room after classes and sit on my bed. And just sit for a while. And I'll probably do the same thing sometime during the afternoon. And before I go to dinner. And when I get back from dinner. And then a couple times in the evening. And then before I go bed. Mixed in with all that bed-sitting are the 63 times that I check my facebook to read all the wall posts that I don't get. And every once in a while, I stare off into space whilst I digest the Cheez-Its I just ate.

What if we eliminated these pockets of wasted time that are strewn along our day? What if, once we got back to our rooms, we got cracking on our homework. Then when we get that done, we'll have time to do something actually significant, or at least enjoyable, whether it's spending time with others and investing in their lives, or partaking in some ministry in the community. The stress caused by backed-up school work is taken away, and we use our time in a way that honors Christ.

I suck at this. I'm on facebook way too much. I play way too many video games. I lay around like a paralyzed walrus way too much. So I can definitely improve, and I imagine we all can as well.

If you haven't noticed (and I imagine you haven't), there's a bloggolution sweeping the nation. Or at least me and a few other guys at Ozark. So check out the links to Jim, Charlie, Tom, and Connor's blogs. And tell your friends. And put it up on your facebook. Print T-shirts. Rent billboards. Stand on the street corner with a sign. Secretly add this site to all your friends' favorites. Whatever it takes.