Don't be a slave to the clock

So, did you make it to church on Sunday? Did you get there too early? Did you go back home and just not make it in? If that is what happened, you were probably not alone. I’m sure there were many who did just that and forgot about the switch to Central Standard Time.

I don’t want to get into a grand discourse of what is time and how we travel it or even why we do Daylight Savings Time. I don’t understand much of what scientists say when they explain the physics and such of time. What I do know is that we allow time to control us way too often.

I remember a preacher admonishing his congregation saying, “I don’t mind you looking at the clock when I am preaching, or even looking at you watch. It’s when you put your watch up to your ear to see if it is working that upsets me.” I guess the old boy could get a bit long winded.

The thing is we preachers do try to be aware of time. We know that most of our congregants have lives outside of the church. There are deadlines and details that must be met. The workday is around the corner, and if you don’t get out of church at the right time, you might miss your table at the restaurant.

But I also believe we are very adept at putting too much blame on time. We use the time thing as an excuse to not be at church, or to not come to Bible study. We get too busy to even attempt to pray or read the Bible. We let time take over, and we become a slave to its ceaseless ticking. The real problem is not time, but priority.

Ephesians 5:15-16 tells us, “Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil.”

We each have 24 hours a day. Some of it will be spent in rest and some in work. The rest of that time will be spent however you wish. This means there really is no excuse for not making it to church on any given day or night. There is no excuse for not reading your Bible or doing your devotions. There is only choice.

Only you can choose how you spend your time. No one dictates your use of time. It is ultimately your choice if you go to church or not.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, you are not a slave to the clock. You are a child of God, which means you belong to the creator of time. God didn’t make the day and the night to enslave us, but to give us the opportunity to be free to worship and love Him.

And if nothing else, remember this. God made time for you, not you for time. So, maybe give God your time.

See you in church.

Rev. Kent Wilfong is the pastor at the United Methodist Church, Doniphan/Neelyville.