The Gift of a Day

Last week our neighbor of almost 30 years was found dead lying in bed. Anna was an excentric German lady with a heart of gold. Hers was the first home on Pine Ave., and she believed that the entire street belonged to her. She took ownership of every home and made every neighbor part of her family. She had an opinion for every neighbors' activity from the color of their homes to how to raise their children. Anna cared.

One of our most fun stories about Anna occurred as soon as we moved in. We would watch her from behind window blinds as she tiptoed across the street to place her trash into ours. It was only until she discovered that she paid for the garbage removal in her taxes, that she used her own front yard to set out her bags. Last week we found out that she was very well-to-do, but you would not know it from her frugal ways. She gave gifts freely, but only second hand items from yard sales. Anna picked up bread that stores were tossing out and distributed the baked goods to all the neighbors. Her home was one of the humblest abodes on the block. Anna will always be remembered, not for her money, but for her giving.

As I've grieved for the loss of a good neighbor, I think of Anna in her yard bent over, pulling weeds, arranging her gnomes, and trimming bushes. She lived every day with gusto. She was alive with activity! Every day was a gift she wanted to enjoy and she did!

This week my days have crawled by in very slow motion. I have looked at the clock often to find that time had taken tiny baby steps. I've spent my time wishing it were the weekend already, and then I think of Anna. I'm sure she would have loved to have had the gift of one more day. Why would I want to pass up these precious gifts? Could it be because I am not living my life as a gift? Could it be that I am not alive with loving others and thinking of others like Anna did?

The gift of a day is so often overlooked until our days our done. I think I'll take my gift of today and love someone. How about you?

Creator of the sun, moon and stars, You have given us the gifts of each day to work, rest, and even play. You have said that You want us to have abundant life, and yet we so often want to rush past the days where You patiently await our enjoyment of Your gift of today. We race toward the days ahead and forget the days present to us now. Forgive us for pushing away Your precious gift of today. Help us to find abundance in the work, rest, and play You give us. Thank You for waiting patiently for us to slow down and see what we are missing!

What Do You Have to Give?

There are many things we are given that are to be shared with others. God richly provides many things to us. He wants us to enjoy everything he supplies, but He also wants us to share generously with others.

We are lavishly rich in time, talent, money, and our testimony. Oh, but you say you don't have much time, don't have any talent, short on money and , well, without those you have little testimony! The truth is that we are rich in all of those things. Yes, we may find ourselves less full of one or more of these things but we do have them! god did not over look us when He was sharing His goodness with His people!

Time slips by quickly. If we fritter away our time, we will have none to share when a friend in need calls. I know that I let minutes pass by unnoticed and once they are gone I can never get them back. I often wonder where the time went. Some days I accomplish much and other days i while away the time given to me. It is sad that when a need is made known I sometimes have to say "No" because I've wasted my time and now the need to complete my chore is urgent. Time is a precious gift to share because it becomes more meaningful to us when we do!

Talents can sometimes be scary! Yes, they can be hidden because we are so afraid of being seen as a fool or worse that we won't be as good as someone else! The truth is that talents can be cause for others to ridicule us. They can be a source of pride. We want to be the best and so we hide our talent away because we are meant to sing in the choir and not do the solo! Our talents take work and sometimes we are just plain lazy. We don't want to do what it takes to improve or find our potential! Talents are a gift that should be shared because it brings joy and reveals God to the world! sharing our talent brings satisfaction and joy to us also!

Money given is life shared. It is really hard to obey God's whisper when I hear Him say give this much, when I only have a little for myself. The truth remains that giving out of our need is a blessing not only to others but also to ourselves.

It is true that our time, talents and our money is our life. The hours of our life have been exchanged for the money we earn. Taking time out of our day is an offering of our life. Using our talents is opening our lives to others. Giving our life away is a testimony.

So what do we have to give? We have our lives to give! There is no greater love that to offer your life for someone in need.

Lord God, You have lavished riches on all Your children! You have given us life and even when we have our own needs we still have much to give! Teach us to give as You have given! Let us offer our lives as a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to You!

A Time to.....

What time is it? We ask this question many times in our life. It is asked almost exclusively of the hour . but in reading Ecclesiates 3:1-8, I wonder if we should also ask God what time is it in my life?

Is it a time to birth a new adventure or a time to let a relationship die?
Is it time to put our resources to work for others or to gather in a harvest?
Is it time to kill our evil habits and thoughts, or to heal the wounds from the past?
Is it time to tear down our pride or a time to build ourselves up in Christ?
Is it time to cry over our sins, or a time to laugh at the enemy who accuses us unjustly?
Is it time grieve over lost time and lost relationships, or is it time to embrace the dance of the new?
Is it time to dig out the burdens that get in our way, or to rearrange the obstacles into bridges for going forward to our future?
Is it time to make something or someone a part of our every day living, or time to wait, holding back for the right time to change?
Is it time seek out our future, or is it time to lose ourselves so that Gods' plan would be fulfilled?
Is it time to keep our things, thoughts, and time to ourselves or is it time to throw them out to those who wait?
Is it time to tear down walls and rip away our self protection, or is it time to sew trust in our Good and Loving God into the fabric of our lives?
Is it time to be quiet before the Lord and others so we can listen to them without prejudice, or is it a time to speak up and stand for the truth?
Is it time for us to love even the sinner, or is it time to hate the sin?
Is it time to make war on the evil that seems to oppress and overwhelm the world, or is it time to make peace with God?

It is time. It is time to do something. It is time to be someone! It is time to ask God, "What time is it? "

Oh Ancient of Days, You know all my days and You have a good plan for my life. It is only You that can tell me what time it is. It is my place to ask and want to know. Today I ask. what time is it for me Lord?