Time - friend or foe?
I was struck today in my reading of Luke 5 how people pushed to hear Jesus teach the Word of God and how he found the time to go to the lonely places. I asked him how he found the time and the question he responded with made me ponder.
Is time my enemy or my friend?
Often time is my enemy. It overwhelms me and calls me to ask 'when will I find the time?' Others are afraid to ask of my time because I am so busy. Yet, like many, much of my time is frittered away on the inconsequential.
It made me think of Mary and Martha. A much overused pair of sisters held up as examples
of how to be and how not to be. Nevertheless many women are still actively and passively encouraged be Martha’s. Have a job, do the housework, be there for the appointments, sort out the lives of the children and so on. Women, generally speaking, still do the majority of housework and family care all whilst holding down full time jobs or significant community roles.
And yes, there are women who don't do all this and men who do.
However, despite the exceptions there is still evidence, indeed research to show that women continue to be like Martha and dream of being Mary. I know I do.
Is time my enemy or my friend? For Martha it was her enemy. She needed to
do, to provide, to be a good host. All worthy endeavours of course. For Mary, time was her friend. She knew that her priority was to listen.
Jesus showed in Luke 5 (which doesn’t include the story of the 2 women!) that time is his friend. He had time to preach, to listen, to heal and indeed to send out the 70! But he also went to the lonely places to pray. And I have no idea about housework but he certainly had plenty men folk to care for…
My challenge is to make time my friend. I need to be Martha but not shy away from being Mary. I want my story to hold those little verses that said 'she slipped away to the lonely places to pray!' After all if Jesus needed to why not us? And if Mary has chosen the better way, why
am I so determined to clean the house all the time? Rebel against the culture that says I must!
I'll be honest-I'm not sure what my lonely place looks like but I'm going to find out..running has certainly shown me that I can find time. But finding the lonely place in our busy world is hard work. I suspect I will need to value the early mornings…
Is time your friend or your enemy? What might you do to change your relationship with time? If time becomes my friend then I will embrace its wonderfulness. For when time is my friend I lose fear. I value the precious moments. I worry less. Though for the life of me I genuinely don't where it disappears too!
May you find the time to seek out that lonely place where time is quiet and the company restorative. May Martha get time off just to be with her Lord.
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May time be your friend and may she be mine. Amen.
There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens. Eccl 3:1
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