It's about Time
Do you ever find a behavior pattern in your life that you intend to change but never quite get around to addressing? Not anything big, but something that still irritates you?
For me, it's being late.
Despite being more time-conscious than most people I know, I am seldom early to a meeting. In fact I usually break an arm patting myself on the back if I'm simply on time. Sadly, more often than not I'm usually late. Not by much, mind you, usually just a few minutes. But I'm usually late. And it drives me crazy.
Why do I persist in doing this? The reasons are numerous – sometimes I try to cram in one more thing before I leave, and it takes longer than I expected; at other times I fail to allow for contingencies that might delay me, such as traffic; then there are the times that I just get lost in my work and don't look at the clock and all of a sudden notice the time and yell out, "Oh no! I'm gonna be late!"
While the reasons may be neutral, the results are always bad: I yell at drivers who aren't driving fast enough for me; I sit impatiently at stoplights, frustrated that the city can't time them any better; I call someone to say I'm running late but will be there in just a minute or two. (For the record, I've never been late for a worship service or wedding or funeral – although I sure have been close a few times.)
Despite an entire message series on MARGIN (half of which I preached!), I still haven't changed. But I really do want to. And I hope to. Heck, I've even prayed about it!
Enough about me … now let's turn the spotlight on you. OK?
Given the fast-paced culture we all live in, you may at times struggle with being on time yourself. If you do, I'm the last person to condemn you. To do otherwise would be the ultimate in hypocrisy.
But I do want to call you to a higher standard, the one I'm aiming at myself. In particular I want to call you to a "standard of timeliness" if you're a weekend volunteer at PTCC. Your role is so important to the overall church that when you show up on time at your volunteer station, it's like you are the oil in the organizational engine – everything works smoothly and efficiently. Conversely, if you run late, the engine sputters and spews. This is especially true if you work with children and preschoolers – it's far better to be in your classroom waiting on the kids when they arrive than for them (and their parents) to be waiting on you. Right? So please make a point of arriving 5-10 minutes early to your volunteer places of service this weekend.
I'd love to say more, but to tell you the truth I'm supposed to meet a friend at Chipotle's in 12 minutes – and it's a 15-minute drive from here (if the lights are timed right ). Uh-oh … looks like I blew it again …
Thanks for all you do to serve Christ through PTCC – whether late or on time!
Paul Basden, senior pastor
PS – I'm not sure exactly how to make this transition – perhaps you can figure it out – but don't miss this weekend's message from Jim on "Married Sex."
