Not a single minute

I’ve been thinking a lot these last few days about a minute.  We played “Minute to Win It” at church on Saturday and it has me thinking.  We only have a certain number of minutes in our day.  Everyone has the same amount.  Want to guess how many?  1440.  That seems like a lot doesn’t it.  What about a week?  10,080.  And in a year, we have 120,960 minutes.  Now, that does seem like a lot. 

But, what do you do with those minutes?  I keep thinking of all of the minutes I have wasted.  Never to get them back.  Just yesterday, Bella asked me to play a game.  I said “Just a minute”.  Well, that minute turned into 20 minutes and she forgot she asked.  I totally wasted 20 minutes doing something unimportant and lost important time with my daughter.  I’ll never get those minutes back.  Sure, I’ll play games with her later, but I can never go back and play the game she forgot about.  Why did I do that?   What I was doing was trivial compared to the time I could have spent with her.  She wants to be with me and I chose something else over her.  Have you done that?  I’m sure I’m not the only person who has put something off for “just a minute”.   

This is Bella three years ago on her birthday.  It seems like yesterday but those minutes really do fly by.   

 

This is  Griffin at the same time.

Where has the time gone?

Ecclesiastes 9:12 says “Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come:” (NIV)  I’m hoping to be on this earth a long time, but honestly I don’t know what the next minute holds.   Life is so fragile.  Just the other day, a friend was telling about a baby that is barely hanging onto life after suffocating in the couch.  I believe in miracles; but, that mommy could have very few minutes left with her child.   I’m sure she would give anything to be able to go back to “just a minute” before this happened.   

I don’t want to have minutes wasted.  God has a plan for me and my children.  He knows how we will choose to spend our minutes.  I pray that I choose wisely things that will please him.   That really is all  that matters.  I know that he is pleased when I take the time to do things with my kids.  I know that he is pleased when I teach them about Him instead of pounding useless facts into them.  I know that he is pleased when we read His word instead of trying to figure out science and history lessons.  We are working hard to help our children grow up to not waste their minutes. 

God wants a personal relationship with us.  That doesn’t happen by chance.  We have to spend time getting to know him and choose to spend our minutes with him. 

Life doesn’t give us any answers, but God does.  He does know how many minutes I have left.  Whether it is one or 6,000,000, I don’t want to waste a single minute. 

If you find an extra minute today, could you please pray for Baby Eli who is fighting hard for life.  Thanks.