#operationreadmybible (Part 5: Too Busy)
So, we hit on this earlier with the I’m too tired excuse, but I think there’s more to say about busy-ness.
If you’re not reading your Bible because you’re too busy, you’re probably not too busy; you’re either bad at managing your time or you don’t think reading your Bible is worth prioritizing.
No judgment. Just the facts.
The priorities thing is a decision you have to make: Do you actually want to read your Bible? If you do, you have to decide that it’s more important than watching Homeland. You can do both if you have time. But if you’re only going to do one, pick the one that’s your priority.
A couple years ago, I chose five priorities, five things I would do every day no matter what. And I did them. Every day. Lots of other stuff didn’t get done, but those five things always did. Because they mattered most. Reading my Bible was on that list.
Some of you do see Bible reading as a priority, but you’re not-so-good at managing your time. When you aren’t intentional with your time, it leaks, and you can’t get it back.
Do you ever find yourself on Facebook or Tumblr and you look at the clock and realize you’re been there for twenty minutes and you don’t even remember logging on? Or maybe you’ve been watching episodes of your latest binge show on Netflix. You meant to watch one episode and now you’re three in.
This is what happens when we don’t take command of our time, when we allow distractions to eat our schedules.
What if instead we set limits for our Internet use and stuck to them? What if we set up boundaries for how much tv we’d watch and stayed within them?
What if we said “I will not answer work emails after eight o’clock” and then we actually kept our word?
That’s the kind of intentional scheduling it takes to live the life you want to live instead of the life thrust upon you. That’s what it takes to have time for meaningful interaction with God’s word. You have to eliminate the junk to make room for the good stuff.
Once you’ve made room, commit to a daily practice of reading. Choose a specific time and place.
For some of you, it’ll be first-thing-in-the-morning breakfast with the Holy Spirit or lunch in the break room. You might read the minute the kids are in bed. Maybe the best time for you is after school before soccer practice. Maybe you’ll read your Bible every day in the pickup line at your kids’ school.
Whatever the magic time is for you, preferably a time you’re not sleepy, grab it. Stick a flag in the seven a.m. spot and claim it for Bible reading. Make it your standing appointment and don’t cancel it for anything.