What's Your Hurry?

Do you hurry from one place to another?
Speeding from event to another event.
Is everything an emergency?
The more things we have, the more our things require our time.
Bigger house? Clean more. 
Bigger garden? Water more. Weed more. Can more.
Racing from one thing to another does not reflect peace.
Instead it shows a misplaced focus.

When you have a single all-consuming focus, you can say “no” to lesser things that don’t help you reach that focus.
We’ve allowed non-essential things to crowd our time with God.
We sleep in, don’t have time for God and pray He blesses our day.
We return from work, throw together dinner, help with homework, prepare children for bed and fall wearily into bed exhausted, promising to read the Bible in the morning.
But the next morning is the same.
You say, “It’ll be better when the kids are bigger.”
But it isn’t. It’s harder. 
Now you’re busy with their things too.
“It’ll get better when the kids are gone.”
But it isn’t. How can I be busier now than before?
But it happens.
When you look back on where your time was spent…it’s just gone.

I started writing when I was a child.
When raising my boys, I couldn’t write. 
But as the boys got older, my opportunity for writing returned.
By waiting, I gained insight and experience that helped other wives and moms.
Today many mom blogs are written by moms with two children— 2 years old and younger.
Their solutions seem shallow and ineffective. Yet they have a great following.
I cringe at their recommendations. Their ways have not been seasoned.
They are a young woman leading young women.
How do they even have time to write?
That’s why the Bible says, “Older women teach the younger.”
But I had to wait to reach that “older woman” stage.
Sometimes good things are not to be done now.

Ever notice something about Jesus?
He never hurried anywhere.
His focus was so intense on what God wanted Him to do, He had time to spend in long hours of prayer.
(Who has time for that now?)
He ignored things that weren’t crucial—for those things that were essential.
Mary chided him for delaying—“If you’d been here, Lord, Lazarus wouldn’t have died.”
But Jesus arrived just in time to raise Lazarus from the dead.
It’s not our time, it’s God’s.

Each miracle Jesus performed changed the person physically. 
Those healed did not all accept Him—remember the 10 lepers?
Only one returned to thank Him.
You can't judge effectiveness by immediate fruit.
James, Jesus's own brother, didn't recognize Him as Lord until after His resurrection. 
What is more delayed than raising your children to know God?
Stages of diapers, toddler's tantrums and learning to read do not immediately give evidence to godly persons!
 

You say, “I don’t have time for that….”
“Interruptions are our day.”
Those questions your children ask when they’re going to bed are the things that hinder us from doing our things.
Those little moments enable us to teach our children eternal messages that will stay with them for life.
Who cares about our things?

All those things you are busy with, if they aren’t sanctioned by God, shouldn’t be done.
Even if they're good things.

Panic attacks seem prevalent, even in the church.
Why? People do more things than they should.
Being busy elevates the “worth” of an individual.
Even children are anxious or depressed.
If their child does music, sports and academics, they will succeed in life. 
So every parent rushes their child to participate in everything.

We limited our boys, though they were extremely athletic, to one sport a year, because we wanted to keep our time with family. 
They are not hurt today by their lack of participation. 
Of course none of them made it to professional sports, although many were eligible.:) 
But they value family.

When was the last time your family ate dinner together?
That time is crucial for the family.
It is non-existent in most families today.
Because worthless things have taken its place.

People think, "If they volunteer for every church program and project, God will bless."
Try this project, see if God will allow it to succeed.
God is not in the business of experimenting to see if this is what you should do.
He already knows. Ask Him.
Then wait for His answer.
When you hurry ahead of His will, you've left God behind.

God doesn’t bless everything you do, just because it’s a good thing.
Not all good things are for you to do.
Or for you to do now.
If you are doing something you shouldn’t be doing, don’t expect God’s blessing.

READ THOSE AGAIN SLOWLY.

When you enter God's presence to present your needs and requests, you are there on HIS time.
Time doesn't matter with God.
He wants you to rest in Him.
You can't "rest in God" fast.

My husband tells anxious patients, “Make a list of everything you must do and every commitment you have, including the obvious, like taking out the trash, should you stay married, should you go to church…. 
Evaluate, with prayer, what you must do, and what you should set aside.”
Anxiety comes from your subconscious mind trying to fix and do all the things you have crammed back there so you don’t have to think about it when you are conscious.
When you sleep, those unresolved issues come to mind and you become anxious.
It’s no wonder you wake up unable to breathe with a racing heart!
No one can do all those things you're trying to do.

Anxiety comes from doing more than what you should.

Sometimes that manifests itself in trying to control things you can’t.
Trying to change your husband? If you aren’t submissive, you may master him, but both of you will end up miserable. 
Anxiety attacks will increase, because you are carrying a burden God never met for you to carry—headship of the family.

After evaluating your list of what you should do, give those to God. 
Ask Him to work through you to complete them.

Even doing the right things, at the right time, without God’s help, will result in frustration. 

Jesus didn’t heal everyone.
He healed those who came to Him.
Not all were willing to come.
Remember the rich man? 
He came to Jesus, but went away from Jesus sad.
He wasn’t willing to do as Jesus said.
He couldn't give it to God.
We are like that.
We try to do good things, without God.
Like making a recipe without salt. Remember Are You Salty?
God isn't there.

When you minimize what you should do,
you find strength for what you must do.
Jesus set his face toward the cross.
That was His reason for coming.
That was His purpose for living.

All those other things—healing, teaching, living—pointed Him to the cross.
They were essential to authenticate His ministry.

We have been made to please God.
Whatever we do should reflect that.
Making time with Him is essential.
(Do a study on verses that say, "This pleases God.")
Anything that does not, eliminate.

Maybe it’s television time, even news.
How does news help us please God?
Do you justify your time?
(Maybe you should read Are You a Manipulator? again!)

Evaluate all that you do in light of how it pleases God.
Eliminate the un-necessary.
So you can concentrate on the essential.

There's a lot to be said for a simple life.
We minimize what we do and have. 
We focus on what is important.
That takes the hurry out of our life so we can truly live.

I write about what matters...to you---
women, wives and moms---
about your family, faith and future.
I write about what's hard, what helps and what heals.
I show you how it's done. And not done.
I hold your hand as you find what matters to the Savior.
And let go of those things that mattered to you, but not to Him.
I write about what matters...to Him.
               Sonya Contreras

Faith
Find more articles about faith here:
The Need for Meaning Even in Pain
Reminders of What's Important
God's Unmeasurable Love
A Quarter of a Century Spent for Our Country
What Were You Thinking?
Who Are You Watching?
Boundaries for a Better Life
God's Boundaries
Memories of a Hero Mom
The Ripple Effect
How Do We Think Like Jesus
Litany of a Waiting Woman
Ever Cook a Frog?
New Year's Reminders
They Galled Her Gammy
When God Speaks
A Russian Christmas Story
Be Thankful
Be Grateful
Are You Tired of the Same, Old Thing?
  (reprint)
Laughter—Why Laugh?
Mom
Are You Disturbed?
Unity of the Brothers
Encouragements To Declutter
Do You Have Too Much Stuff?
Too Much Stress
Getting Past the Noise—The Value of Silence
Are You Scatterbrained?
How Good Are You?
Looking for Something Good To Read?
A Cup of Cold Water
I Will Trust When I Cannot See
Encouragement—What Is It?
Being in God's Presence
"Einstein and the Professor"
When God Is Silent
Do You Crave Beauty?
Using Stories to Discipline
The Danger of the Wrong Story
Using Stories to Teach Lessons
God is in charge of the future
November Dare Joy Challenge
Ungratefulness
Developing an Attitude of Gratitude
Looking for Jesus
What Do Your Prayers Reflect?
Life's Little Pleasures
Daniel—Greatly Loved by God
Take Every Thought
Jars of Clay
What Do Your Words Reveal about Your Heart?
How Do You Get Strong Faith?
Too Busy for God's Word?
How Do You Think Like Jesus?
Reflections from a Mom
Pain—What's It Good For?
Why Marry?
Consider the Robin
One Life Who Made a Difference
What Day Are You Living In?
Interrupted by God
Is Jesus Really the Answer to Everything?
Are You Beat Up?
What's Your Hurry?
Are You a Manipulator?
Are You Salty?
Are You Condemned?
Trying to Understand?
Do You Expect Answers to Your Prayers?
Do You Eat Your Stress?
Need Focus?
Going through Trouble?
Immanuel—God with Us
Looking for a Relationship?
When God Says, "No!"
What Do You Do with Left-Overs?
How Great Is Your God?
Are You Needy?
How Do You See Sin?
What Do Your Words Mean?
Is Evil Overwhelming You?
Those Aha Moments
Is Your Soul Happy?
Are You Ignored?
Looking for the God Moment
Do You Know Truth from Almost Truth?
I Believe in Jesus—What Now?
Do You Have Your "Son"-Glasses On?
Less Is More
Singing His Praise
Are You Trying To Do It All?
What Do You Do with All These Prayer Requests?
Have a Problem?
Do You Know How to Pray?
Looking for God in Every Moment
Are You Receptive to God's Blessings?
Tell the Senate: Mothers Aren't Birthing People
Is Your Life Complicated?
How Do We Fight Evil?
Fearfully and Wonderfully Made
Giving Up or Taking Away
the Bible is simple
Are You a Dripping Faucet?
What's Your Testimony?
The Final Move
Be Careful What You Wish For!
Are Your Prayers Answered?
I Choose Joy
What Have You Learned from Your Hardship?
Who Are You Trying to Change?
What's Your Five-Year Plan?
The Danger of "Aloneness"
My Colors
Are You a Whiner?
Are Your Works Approved?
Do You Think You're Stressed?
Is Your Soul Feeling Ragged?
God Speaks to the Heart of the King
What about the Details?
Have You Felt the Long-Suffering of God?
How Does God Lead You?
Do You Have Enough?
Don't Carry More than You Need
Cast the Seed
God Is Faithful
Are You Deceived?
Are You Essential?
Are You Safe?
Are You Tired of the Same Old Thing?
Does the World Make Sense?
Have You Seen God's Majesty?
Do You Feel Judged?
If You Only Had One More Day To Live
Are You Understood?
Do You Long for the Word of God?
Slow Down and Smell the Dead Leaves
Are You Hospitable?
Our Heritage Is Bought by Blood
Are You Disturbed?
Are You Depressed?
I Did It My Way
Finding the Simple Life with Meaning
The Simple Life
Do You Have the Right Words?
Did Your Dream Die?
On the Other Side of the Fence
Marijuana, Mental Illness, and Violence
Confessions of a Desperate Mom
Saving for Tomorrow
A Wedding Remembered
Who Will Stand in the Gap?
Are You a Protector or a Ruler?
Who Are You?
Are You an Image Bearer or a Wad of Cells?
Are You a Watchman?
Where Do You Find Meaning?
The Lamb of God as Told by a Scribe
What Love Is This?
Remember: The Symbols of Passover Explained
Tea and Rest
Do You Have Peace?
What Makes a Marriage Work?
When Life Is Awful
Are You Strong Enough?
Rules
Seasons
Be Faithful through Suffering
Do You Know the Word?
Wake Up! Strengthen What Remains
Are You Spit in God's Mouth?
Is Jezebel in Your Midst?
Do You Stand Against Satan Himself?
Are You Tired of Being a Mom?
What in the World Is Happening?
It's Not My Story
How Would Your Faith Compare?
Are You Sinking?
Are You a Rule Follower?
Useful for Him
An Intimate Moment with Mary
The Worldview that Makes the
   Underclass
Thoughts to Ponder
What Does It Take To Know the
    Heart of God?
See the Story in the Stars
Do the Scriptures Burn You?
Being in His Presence
Contentment: It's Not for the Timid
How Secure Are You?
How Do You Respond To Stupid People?
The Earthworm Is My Hero
Heart Issues or Issues of the Heart
Things Aren't Always What They Seem
More faith articles are found here:

under the Table of Contents. Also available in book form.
Or here:

under the Table of Contents. Also available in book form.
Articles on Suffering can be found  here, 

under Table of Contents. Also available in book form.
Special Days
Remember: The Symbols of 
   Passover Explained    
Aug 12, 2017 The Heavens Declare the Glory of God
July 4th, Freedom
What Is an American Soldier?
Valentine's Day: A Day of Love?
Memorial Day-A Day To Remember
Veterans' Day-To Honor Our Men
Fall Colors
First Thanksgiving Day
    Proclamation
Christmas: Stories behind the Songs
Christmas: Stories behind the Songs, part 2