Same TIME Part IV ~ How valuable is yours?

If you are a writer or speaker, have you ever noticed when you are preparing for an assignment or upcoming speaking engagement the Lord will place a life example in your path to see how you deal with it? Today’s blog is no different.

We all have the same amount of time yet how we manage and utilize it varies. I am a planner. I enjoy having a schedule with the 5 W’s covered for at least three to six months at a time. I like to know where I am going and when I need to be there. I’ve been “one of these” for as long as I can remember. My parents kid me because even as a little one I liked to know who, what, where, when, and why of our upcoming events. I anticipated most while others I hoped would have an emergency cancellation. As an adult, our house thrives on “knowing” and time management.

Our weekend has been planned since November. I’ll have dinner in the crockpot while I greet and then attend a workshop in Syracuse all day. Ed and Mary plan to relax and have a “Daddy/Daughter” day until I return.  I’ll sneak out of the workshop early in order to make it to our dinner engagement on time until…

Mary’s presence is requested to perform at the high school THIS Saturday evening. Of course this is an honor, yet unfair at the same time. Choices need to be made. Do we deny our daughter from performing with the rest of the band, “We’d love for you to perform but we already have dinner plans.” Or do we cancel at the last minute so she can perform, thereby altering our family’s plans for Saturday night? Keeping our “time” in perspective, we can’t do it all.

I’ll be honest with you, the planner in me gets frustrated each time these instances of delayed or poor planning somehow become our conflict. A friend of the family is known to, “Someone else’s poor planning is NOT my emergency.” I wish I could say this with her calmness and sincerity. She responds with “Sorry, you didn’t give me enough notice so we’ll have to pass.” Instead, I grumble around the house as I try to figure out what hoops we can jump through to change plans in order to accommodate this new and unplanned event. Did you notice all the “I”’s in this post…I…I…I…!

Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky…Philippians 2:14-15

Don’t get me wrong, life happens and sometimes we need to bend and welcome the change as an opportunity to grow. Yet at other times it is truly one person or one group’s poor planning that causes the world to stop spinning to make their plans happen with no concern of the ripple effect it will have on the lives of those innocently affected.

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 1 Peter 4:8-10

My daughter on the other hand says “Mom, I don’t have to do it. We’ll keep things as they are.” Yet the look on her face reads, “I really want to do it but I’m not going to push.” I want to spend the day with my family, preparing for my speaking events and writing with it concluding to the sound of the jazz band playing. Yet, this is a lot of cancelled plans for me to make in order for this to happen.

We should pray for answers and God’s guidance yet the world seems to throw things at us and expect immediate action…I guess this is why “we” are called to be different.

Enough ranting for today ~ enjoy your Thursday evening! I’m off to dinner with my parents, this always make the day seem brighter. What will we decide? Only God knows, I’ll place it at his feet for tonight and pray for clarity and direction when I awake in the morning.

Have you ever been in a situation like this? How did you respond? Do you wish you responded differently?