It is now evident that time does nothing for us except take us a little closer to death (or Jesus’ return) each day. Time is a gift to us. We must plan how to use the gift of time in order for it to work for us.
Here’s what Myles Munroe has to say about time: “The secret to life is effective management of time and chance.”
“The principle key to management of time and change is planning.”
“You cannot control time nor change but you can plan the way you use them.”
“Successful people are simply people who effectively plan how they use time.”
“If you aim at nothing, you will never miss.”
So, today, our lunchtime conversation was about planning and I am looking forward to helping to bring those plans to fruition. How about you? Could this be a prompt for you to start dreaming again? You may be an empty nester wondering: “What next?” Why not let this post prompt you to have that conversation with your spouse about that 5 year plan?
Maybe you have a plan you’re working towards and if so, well done! May I encourage you now to pass on some of your years of wisdom to the next generation? There's a gap to be filled in the education of the next generation. They may be able to see the value in putting together a 5-10 year plan so they can avoid some of the future disappointments that are inevitable when such plans aren’t made. Do also remind them to hold loosely to those plans, in making room for adjustments as they grow together and making room for diversions as God directs them along the path set out for them.
Sometimes they need such advice but aren’t aware that they do. We would have been grateful to have such wisdom passed onto us in the early stages of our togetherness. Therefore, from a place of painful lessons learned, I would like to plead to your compassionate side and suggest the following: Whenever you get the opportunity to converse with newly weds or young couples (looking to follow the path of marriage) please consider asking prompting questions that may invite them into a conversation where they may be enlightened.
We are living in an age where our young adults are without the basic skills for doing life and we need to call on the older generation for their wisdom as mentors. We are watching the blind leading the blind and falling into pits and traps set for them by the enemy when simple life lessons from the generation before us could have saved them from stumbling over obstacles or falling into some of those pits.
We were clueless, walking into marriage and I wish my grandparents were still alive at the time we began our journey. Growing up, I witnessed them counselling others in our community so I know we would have been given some wise counsel coming from their experience. It would have found us in pre-marital counselling, of some sorts, before deciding on a wedding date.
It is now, while doing life together, in the marriage, that we are finding out some basic things that should have been established before saying, ‘I do.’ It has robbed us of so much joy in our marriage.
Thankfully, being brought up with a couple who made God the centre of their world and introduced me to my heavenly Father, I learned how to lean and depend on Jesus. I learned that prayer is a weapon. But more importantly, I learned the art of patience from my Grandmother, a key ingredient to arriving at this point on the journey without giving up.
Most recently, through an exercise of revisiting my past, I was reminded of the first lesson I learned about God, from my Grandmother. He is my Provider.
That has put things into perspective, once more, and there in that moment, the weight was lifted taking the frustrations with it and opening the door to acknowledge the disappointment and grieve the losses (including those unmet expectations).
I am encouraged to go through the process of grieving to again experience healing and enjoy the abundance of life that Jesus gifted us through His death and resurrection. Heres’s to a renewed, refreshed and restored me! Here’s to reimagining a thriving existence! Life is for living! Let’s live while we are alive!