Time management is a critical skill in the lives of Christians. There is so much in this world to occupy our hearts, thoughts, hands, feet, and finances…and each of those avenues will be utilized daily to either “wisely spend” or “simply waste” our precious time.
I wake up, make the bed, boil water for tea, check messages, get dressed, brush teeth, pour juice, drink juice, carry wife’s school things to car, make tea, make protein shake, get coat, comb hair, spritz cologne, say bye to wife, pet the guinea pigs, lock the house, and leave. On the way to work I call my wife, chat, get her “angry traffic report”, pray with her on the phone for our family and workday, and get to work.
I work 8 hours, run errands, come home, feed the pigs (haha), make coffee, check messages, and start house projects until 8. Then dinner is made, eaten, and our dishes washed. Then I shower, read the Bible, and hit the hay for the day. Every weekday.
You probably have some sort of a routine. Oh, it may duck and weave like a boxer at times, but generally we all have a routine of “the basics”.
But what about the in-between times and moments of rest throughout the day? What fills those moments of downtime?
Can I tell you what is attempting to occupy all of us? It’s the daily ten minute news cycle that is going to keep getting crazier every day…especially here in America. We’re being hit, I believe purposely, with a “Blitzkrieg of Breaking News Stories”.
It’s IMPOSSIBLE to invest yourself in every breaking news story…do you really think that you can emotionally process all of these everyday?
- The fentanyl crisis
- The cost of groceries
- The mystery drones over America
- Hurricane Helene aftermath
- California “wildfires”
- The Ukraine war
- The Israel Hamas war
- Jimmy Carter death
- Etc, etc etc…
Friends, I encourage you to occupy your minds with Scripture, move your lips with prayer, and keep your hearts with diligence as we start 2025. There is a very real spiritual battle playing out worldwide and there will be every opportunity to let FEAR and VANITY manage and distract our time…choose FAITH instead!
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Thank you for that reminder! The enemy is always trying to distract us and fill our hearts and minds with fear. Stand on the Word of God, using your mighty sword to defeat the enemy’s lies.
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Yes indeed, ‘tis a constant battle that starts with us biting at the carrot…I’m learning to ignore the carrots.😆
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Good day Eric 😊👍You raise important points here brother; our lives are full of demands, some of which is mere distraction with little value. I am quite strict on the news input, only watching the main news in one hour in the evening and that’s it until the next day. I see notifications on my tablet/phone but tend to ignore them…I probably should disable them all together. The less time we give to such things means we have more time for prayer and Bible reading. God bless you today brother 🙏
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You’ve got the right idea, brother Alan…giving your brain a rest from the stress of the world…except for just enough to understand what’s happening in the world.
Have a blessed day brother!
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Yours is a timely reminder, brother Eric. I used to be a bit of a news junkie, but found it fueled my negative anxiety, which is pretty much the opposite of faith. I stopped following the “crisis crisis”—a doom scrolling stream of hyped threats—and haven’t missed it at all. Now, if I could just cut back on clicking on YouTube video after YouTube video in the evenings, for longer than I care to admit…😑
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Same here brother, there was a time when I didn’t have a smartphone or internet and would check the latest doom and gloom news at work…then I went on vacation for a week, didn’t check it once, got back and realized the world was still standing and I was less stressful! Win win!
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Great advice, Eric! Sometimes I think Satan works overtime to try to distract me every time I pick up the Bible. 🙂
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