Daily Devotional for March 10, 2011

Mark 14:37-38
He came back and found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, "Simon, you went to sleep on me? Can't you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don't enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don't be naive. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire."

Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.

Have you ever been in a situation where you asked someone to do something with you, and they said they didn’t have time, or they acted disinterested? Maybe you said to this person, “It will only take a few minutes.” And maybe that still seemed like too much of a commitment for them. Do you remember how you felt? Did this make you feel like you were insignificant… not important enough to that person for him/her to give you even a few minutes of time? Did you know we do this to Jesus all the time?

We are like Peter… ready for anything in God on one hand… and as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire on the other. We want God to be there for us the minute we “dial Him up” with a prayer. But let Him ask us for something… or present us with an opportunity to visit with Him for a few minutes or serve in His name… and we just don’t have the time. Quite often can’t stick it out with Him for a single hour… or even a few minutes.

So we check our watches and wonder how much longer the church service will last. We skim over our Bible study verses so we can say we read them… but we don’t really comprehend a word of it. We don’t stop to speak to someone at school or in a store – or even in the aisle at church – because we are in a hurry to get to whatever is on our own agenda.

Let’s be real… we can’t have it both ways. We either want a relationship with God or we don’t. There is no “middle ground.” When I stop and think how often I say, in essence, “I don’t have an hour for you today, Lord,” I feel sick. I fail to recognize that whatever time I spend with my Heavenly Father… he will multiply for me exponentially. I will have more than enough time for the things that I want to do for myself if I give God His time first. And honestly, a lot of what I thought was important may not seem so after spending time in His presence.

Where do you fit into this picture? Are you ready for anything in God… or are you the lazy dog sleeping by the fire? How are you spending your time? Can you spare an hour for your Master?

©2011 Debbie Robus