Thursday, September 10, 2015

no time for God? me either

We met up, this friend of mine, in the aisle with the beans and the mac n cheese, which is ironic, because for weeks we have been trying to set a lunch date, and have been unsuccessful.  Our lives; they are just so busy.  And so we stopped for a quick chat, because all we both had was just a few seconds of time.  "Look at this crap I am buying...processed food."  She waved the box in the air, neon orange noodles, ready in minutes.  "It's a time saver", I agreed.

This was a two second chat that turned into 30 minutes.
 And it was there that this encounter became very clear.
It was God's will.

We talked about the hard stuff, the stuff that weighs a mother's heart down.  We shared our fears and our stresses, and compared schedules and therapists.  And by chance she mentioned the fleeting thought of becoming a catechist, because our parish is short about 9, and it is truly a problem.  But her life-it is so full and so busy. "How can I add one more thing?" she asked.

Oh Lord, you really are funny, sending her my way.
Evangelizing in the grocery store?
You really are good, Lord. You really are.

And so I took a moment, and then shared this with her.
My son?  He has five football coaches for his one team. Five.
But no one has signed up yet to be his religious ed teacher.
Class is in two weeks.
He has no one willing to teach him his faith.
Football, yes.
Faith, not so much.

We do have the time.  We really do.  I am willing to bet that even the busiest person on the planet still has more time than they think.  The truth is, God...we put you last. You, our Creator.  You, giver of life and all that is good.  You, Jesus, who hangs on the cross, carrying the weight of our sins.

Let's just be honest, people.  We do have time, God.  We simply don't have time for you. God, you come last.

And so I shared this secret with my friend, that I will share with you too, in her response to "How do you find the time to do it all?"
When you make more time for God in your day, he multiplies your hours.
Really.  He does.
Or maybe it is not that you get extra hours, but rather, you are able to see more clearly how you are meant to spend your time.
I do not do it all.
I just try to do what  matters.

We parted ways, I left to grab my beans and salsa, and although I was gone for longer than planned, I came home to find that I still had enough time to get done what I needed to do.  You know, we waste a lot of time being busy with things that do not lead us to a better place in the end.  But when we put God first, we always finish better. How? Because the closer you are to God, the better you hear Him whispering, telling you exactly where to go, keeping you from going the wrong direction, leading you to green pastures.