Split Second

The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:17)

In my early teens and twenties, I despised sleeping. I thought it was an enormous waste of time. There were many productive activities I would rather be completing than sleeping! It was nothing for me to sleep four to five hours a night and have no ramifications.

In my time overseas, involved in ministry and bringing into my home a five-year-old autistic child, I began to think about sleep a little more, or in that case a lack of sleep a little more. The culture festivals that seemed to be every month lasted all night long with food, music, dancing, and fireworks… always fireworks. It reminded me of those cherry bombs my father used to get us when we were kids. The explosions were earth-shattering! I believe I lost most of my hearing overseas due to the fireworks and vehicle horns!

“A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.” — Irish Proverb

These days as the years have flown by, my sleep time has been disintegrating. When a health issue escalated two years ago, my sleep time became mostly non-existent. Two to three hours at a time, or sometimes that is all I slept in a night. Funny how circumstances change your attitude. I now cry for sleep, whine for sleep, beg for sleep, and pray for sleep… sandman still sprinkles his golden sleep dust but an undetectable elf whooshing in blows the dust over my already sleeping four-legged guard dog happily snoring at my feet. There goes my protection from things that go bump in the night!!

God mentions time quite often in His Word:

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Ecclesiastes 3:11

As long as it is day, we must do the work of Him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work. John 9:4

Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. Proverbs 27:1

My times are in Your hands;… Psalm 31:15

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12

We have all paused for a moment to honor a memory of some tragic event or the memory of a loved one. I love the moment in the movie A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) when Fred Rogers asked Lloyd to do an exercise with him. Mr. Rogers said, “We’ll just take a moment and think about all of the people who loved us into being.” Although I wasn’t a precious thought in my parent’s minds, I still stand in awe to think that God (Psalm 139:13-16), and someone before I was born, prayed and loved me into being.

I’ve thought about the time wasted over my life. Sometimes I have fretted over time squandered in my teens and early adult life. However, if I wouldn’t have the experiences that I did, I wouldn’t be who I am. And even though I don’t waste time watching television, I have been known to convince myself that it was too difficult of a day and I needed respite from the world. Instead of soaking in the love of God in worship songs, Bible reading, or inspirational reading, I’ve lost myself in some comedy or several old television episodes from my childhood. I know we need rest to renew our body and mind, but it’s better to renew it with something that has long-lasting healing and regeneration and not just a mindless laugh. I’m not against a good laugh.

In the early hours of the morning, while I was wide awake, again, I decided to watch the clock for Daylight Saving Time, as the world changed from 1:59 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. Shazaam! Instantaneously, an hour was taken! In a split second, it was gone!

In a split second…

I rushed my son out the door for the bus.

I sneaked into the house hoping the neighbor wouldn’t see me.

I took that second helping of food.

I didn’t pray for the person in that instance.

I lost several family members.

I said goodbye without saying I love you.

A split second can be a crucial eyeblink. What do you want your defining moment to be?

Valuable time was spent yesterday listening to a sermon. There were several, Biblical tools I was given to help me build and repair things as I maneuver my way through life.

Pray before talking to anyone that is hurting, in need, or has questions.
Not only seize the day but seize the moment when a neighbor wants to talk.
Strive for my walk to match my talk.

These weren’t exact sermon notes but how the Lord spoke to me.

The other great point in time was watching my son quickly scoot over to the iPad when I told him it was time for worship. He couldn’t sing with the worship, but I saw his sweet desire, especially when He swayed to the music.