During a recent trip overseas, I was attending a morning devotional time which was running later than scheduled. The person sharing was a colleague of mine and sensing the tension and uneasiness as he finished his time of sharing, said in a soft and kind tone, “In the west you have a watch, in Africa we have time.” Oh My! What a profound statement! This gentle rebuke and reminder rocked my soul and is one I have reflected on for many days since.

I’m not so sure others in the audience fully appreciated or understood this sage’s comment as most in attendance quickly moved on to their agenda and schedule for the day and seemed oblivious and missed the irony of his comment.  Our purpose for gathering was to enter into a time of prayer, worship and devotion and yet we were putting God on a timer. It was like saying, “God you get this much time and then we need to get on with our day.”

I understand the need to use our time wisely and manage our days well. There are times when schedules need to be kept, tasks must be completed, and deadlines met. However, have we become so driven by the clock, staying busy and on schedule that we miss God opportunities? Do we insist on maintaining our agenda for the day at the expense of a God opportunity to love and care that is right in front of us? Toward the end of his life Author Henri Nouwen said, “My whole life I have been complaining that my work was constantly interrupted, until I discovered the interruptions were my work.

You’ve undoubtedly heard it said and even said it yourself “time is money”. Well, maybe time is money when it comes to business, making money, pursuing possessions and success. However, time is also the currency of relationships. In Gary Chapman’s book the 5 love languages, “time” is one of them.  If I’ve learned anything over the past 4 years about rest and life balance, it’s that Jesus was never in a hurry.  He lived an unhurried life. He lived with purpose and all his actions were deliberate, but his pace was never fast or forced.

Our tendency is to rush headlong to do things for God at such a frantic pace that we end up missing God appointments that He has for us to minister to others if we would only slow down enough to recognize them. Are you missing opportunities to be His hands and feet to a world that is addicted to speed? Just like Henri Nouwen, we must learn to see life’s interruptions as we hurry through our days as opportunities to genuinely love and serve one another. Maybe just maybe, if we can slow down our pace, embrace an unhurried life, and loosen our grip to control time, we can participate in these God ordained opportunities. Are you more committed to your timetable or God’s? Don’t allow the watch on your wrist to distract and deprive you from a deeper and more fruitful life.  

• YouTube