“The Compartmentalizing Question”

This past weekend brought about the end of the 31st Olympic Games in Rio.  For the past two weeks plus, these Summer games have dominated the television schedule on multiple channels.  It has been the talk on major news programming, sport talk radio, and just about any multi-media outlet you would browse.  And every four years when the Summer games pop up, it becomes, for many Americans, a dominate topic of our conversations and our time.  Even my 11 year old daughter asked on Monday night of this week, “What’s on the Olympic’s tonight?”  As I responded, “Last night was the closing Ceremony,” she said, “Oh no.  I don’t want them to be over.  Now I have to want four more years!”  She is right, four more years, 2020, and we’ll be watching the games from Tokyo, Japan.

I can only relate as an American, but it seems to me we have a way of compartmentalizing everything.  We certainly use calendar dates of days, weeks, months, years to track our lives.  We use hours, even minutes, to track our time to order our life.  And it seems to me as I watch our activities of life, as we compartmentalize everything, certain things will certainly bump out other things as to its importance, and in some cases, rightfully so.  Other times, its just what we choose as important to fill that time and space in our lives.  The past two weeks I have enjoyed watching the American athletes compete and win in many of the 42 sports of these games.  I made time, pushing other things out of the way.

As my daughter said, “Oh no… Now I have to wait four more years,” I realized that these games had occupied much of our time at home.  In some ways that was good, for our family watched them together.  But in other ways, not so good.  Late night watching overshadowed giving time to praying together before bedtime.  Oh, I would say, “Kids, don’t forget to say your prayers,” but that is not our normal family routine.  We allowed something to move out to make room for something else.  And in this case, it was not more important.  Our compartment, that of family prayer time, was pushed aside, and filled with something else.

We have a member at HOPE Church that often reminds us that whatever takes priority over your life it your idol.  We all have little idols, but priority over your life, now that’s a huge deal.  

So the question, or The Compartmentalizing Question is this; what have you allowed to push out worship, prayer time, reading the Bible, devotion time, ministry time, service to God time in your life that should be permanently set aside for God?  As a believer, God’s expectation is that we will place Him first.  There is no debate in that.  This expectation is the first of the Ten Commandments and Jesus calls for it first as He gives the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:35-40; Mark 12:28-32; Luke 10:27).  We all know that as we push Christ out other things take that place.

But Marty, you are pastor and that is your life 24/7.  You might say, I have other responsibilities you don’t have.  Really?  I have a life too.  Children in school, two of our kids have jobs we have to schedule around, sports they are involved in, homework, two in college, etc.  Life is busy for us all.  So are you saying, nothing else, but Christ 24/7?  No!  We all need to enjoy life and life’s opportunities.  We live in a great awesome country.  We have families to enjoy, events to attend, work to do, fellowship to participate in.  Time for vacations are great and much needed.  Nothing wrong with that.  Just a thought though for you to consider.  While on vacation, what do you do if it happens to fall on a Sunday?  Do you attend worship?

I’m just trying to get us ALL, that includes me, to think about our days, weeks, months, even our hours of the day and realize that we compartmentalize our lives in such a way that unless we are intentional to place God and time for Him in our lives, regardless of your profession or stage in life, something else will fill that time.  

We all need to set time aside for Him.  And while Sunday worship should be one of those non-negotiable times, there should be daily time set aside too.  When He becomes our priority, the compartmentalization question will be answered.  So for me, I say, “OK Lord, I’m convicted!  I will do better!”

Blessings, Pastor Marty          

Worship, Grow, & Serve