| Tuesday evening, after a full day at work, I had a dinnertime board meeting, and as I was leaving the restaurant, two good friends came in.?I sat and talked with them through their entire meal, and left with so much more energy than I had had when I arrived.?Although we are always in touch (e-mails, quick hellos, etc.), it had been several months since we had made that kind of quality time for each other.??Always so much work to get done.?Always so busy.I didn't realize how much I was missing my time with them and how much it would invigorate me to forget my work for a couple of hours and enjoy their presence.My niece and nephew.I see them at his ballgames.I speak to them briefly on the phone or send them an e-mail occasionally.?I interact with them in small ways when my sister and I are spending time together.But it has been too long since Charlie and I have had a day all to ourselves, or since Sarah and I have shared a long game of Monopoly.?I miss them.?I miss the intimacy that only one-on-one quality time can bring.?So much to do today.?But tomorrow we'll make time, we say?..This afternoon my mom and I talked on the phone for about an hour.?I don't know how long it had been since we talked that long just one-on-one.?It energized my spirit, and I didn't care that I had tests to grade and work to do.You know, my relationship with God is just like this.We never lose contact.?Even in my busiest times, I send up a few "fast food" prayers every day, thanking Him or asking Him for something, or sharing my?concerns,?and I read the Bible . . .Often I don't even recognize that I am missing true intimacy.?But life gets heavy.?Work gets stressful.?Small things start to appear larger and larger.? |
| Small things start to appear larger and larger.?And I realize: I miss Him.I miss our quality time.I miss sitting down with Him without any time schedule or agenda and just enjoying His presence.When I make quality time for Him, I find that I spend little of it talking.?It's all about His presence.?It energizes me. ?It renews my soul.?It invigorates my entire being.?And the most amazing part of the relationship is the listening.?He has been hearing my concerns all along, but I haven't been still enough to hear His guidance.?When we are together I can hear Him clearly.?He has work for me to do.Nothing pleases me more than to be able to serve Him.?My busy schedule doesn't seem nearly as stressful, and nothing seems more pressing than my obedience and service?to Him.?I am so blessed and so loved, and my one desire is to please Him.?All else in my life fades.And oh, the joy of obedience!?The delight of seeing His smile.?The blessing?of seeing what God-sized results He can bring of such simple obedience.?There is no greater blessing and no greater peace.I will spend quality time with Him everyday from now on . . .?or at least until I get too busy again, and too stressed, and forget what it is I am missing.As the hart panteth after the water brooks, So panteth my soul after thee, O God.?(Psalm 42:1) |
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