Sunday, July 9th 2006
Read: Exodus 18
Have you ever used the excuse, “I would like to spend more time with God but I just don’t have the time?” It amazes me how sometimes we can’t even give up 30 minutes of our day to spend time with the creator of the universe. We shouldn’t view this time as a chore but rather a privilege. God wants to reveal Himself to us in new and exciting ways but the only catch is that we have to give Him the time.
This might mean that you will have to wake up a few minutes earlier than usual or possibly skip one of your favorite TV shows but trust me; it will totally impact your life. We have to make God our number one priority. If we’re trying to build a strong relationship with God we have to give Him more than our Sunday mornings and our prayers at dinner.
Exodus 18 talks about Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, paying Moses a visit. Moses served as judge to the people and would sit all day and all night and help others seek God’s will. Jethro flat out told Moses that what he was doing wasn’t good. He believed that Moses and all of the people were wearing themselves out. They were all wasting time because they would be standing around for hours. Moses would have to sit and judge people all day, which, in my opinion, would definitely get tedious after a while.
Jethro suggested that Moses appoint some capable men who were trustworthy, to be officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. These men would learn the decrees and laws and then judge the people. Moses would only have to deal with the most difficult cases. Moses loved this idea because it made his load much lighter. This way he would have more time to Worship the Lord or simply marinate in His love. Moses appreciated Jethro’s wisdom. When Moses was judging all of the people by himself, he wasn’t making proper use of his time because he could have gotten others to help him out.
I think in many ways, we don’t use our time efficiently. I realize that many of us have busy schedules but if our schedules become so busy that we don’t have time for God, I think we need to re-evaluate our priorities. God loves us with an unconditional love and wants us to pursue Him.
In Joshua 1:8 it says “Do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
Q: Are you spending as much time with God daily as you would like to be?
What areas in your daily life can you change so that you will be able to spend more time with God?
Youth Department