“How are you using your time?”
I asked myself this question in the fall season of 2018. It was a beautiful October day in Omaha, Nebraska. The sky was blue, the temperature outside was a cool 65 degrees, the leaves were golden, yellow, and red. Alongside this captivating scene, my young children were outside, laughing, playing and having a wonderful time. However, did I truly notice this wonderful setting which God had hand painted right before my eyes? No, because my head was stuck into my smartphone watching some Youtube video or possibly checking Facebook. It was not until I received some proper guidance from some wise people in my life. First, my wife spoke to me about truly being there for my kids and learning to put the phone down. Her favorite quote says “wherever you are, be all there” and that resonated with me. The next guidance came from my father-in-law, who uses an old flip phone with no internet access. He guided me by action, rather than words. The last bit of guidance came from the words of Billy Graham who spoke passionately about the severity of our use of the time that God has given us. Graham says that “time is limited, any person who tells you that we have all the time in the world is a fool.” Once I was able to put all of these teachings into place, I exchanged my smart phone for a flip phone with no internet. It was seriously one of the best choices that I have ever made. I was able to commit much more time to my family, and the kids loved me for it. My schooling and grades improved. My marriage improved because of the quality conversations without distraction. Though, I am not telling anyone that they need to do exactly as I did and I am certainly not condemning anyone that has a smartphone. What I am saying is that there are many things in this world that will try to steal your time. It will steal time from God, from loved ones, from people, and from valuable priorities. Evaluate where you are spending your time and how you are using your time. Take action and measures to prevent the excess of misused time and prioritize your life. It may not be easy at first but it is well worth it!
-Written by John Horsechief