January 24
“The law of Thy mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.” Psalm 119:72
(4) “I don’t have time,” is perhaps the most common excuse for not studying the Bible regularly. Christians that I know rarely will say this, but they simply don’t make time. I think that this is a cover up for “I don’t want really want to spend time in the scriptures, but I don’t want to be that honest with myself, so I’ll just say I don’t have time.” If some very rich person who lived next door to you said, “If you come over to my house and shovel pig manure for one hour a day for a full year, your choice of time day or night, without missing any days at all, I will give you one million dollars,” and you knew he was telling the truth, would you do it? I doubt if there is a single person reading this who would not find time in their busy schedules, no matter how busy they are, for shoveling manure for $2740 an hour!
Yet God’s reward, if you care to accept it, for an equal amount of time spent in His Word, I would venture to say would be worth much more value than one million dollars, because it would bear fruit for eternity in the currency of relationships and souls and true riches that will never pass away. But if we truly think about all the time we spend doing what we want to do, especially all the time that we waste, I think we will see that we have plenty of time.
I am almost embarrassed to admit that the time I was most diligent in spending time in the Word was when I was the busiest; I was working full time, had four small children, and was working on a Masters degree all at the same time. If ever I had an excuse to not be in the Word, it was then. Yet I found the time because it was a priority for me. As a matter of fact, I found that when I spent time in the Word, the Lord worked things out for me. He created time for me. It was a net gain, not a net loss, and I am convinced He will do the same for anyone who makes His Word a priority.
In my opinion, not having enough time is no excuse, and I don’t think the Lord will accept it either. Put Him to the test in this. Make time for Him and His Word, and see Him give time back to you and more, and in greater measure than you have given to Him!