TakeTime

What a world! Calamity and confusion seem to be the twin details of daily life. Political and cultural events seem to weigh heavily on our minds. The world, and all the news seems to bring fear. I notice that the more news I watch, the angrier and  more anxious I become. The secret to peace is not the right political candidate or economic plan. For me, peace is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Riding in my car this past Saturday evening I heard a hymn I have not heard in years.  As the singer sang this hymn, I discovered deep down in my heart I remembered the words.  A sense of calm came over me.  I decided that for the foreseeable future I am going to meditate on the stanzas of this hymn.  This hymn is hardly ever heard today and more than likely will be new for many.   1 Peter 1:16 “Be holy as your Father in heaven is holy, seems to be the text from which the stanzas of the hymn originate.  The words of the song speak to the devotional aspect of Christian living.  Holiness does not come from rule following and other practices, rather it springs from a close communion with Christ.  Read the stanzas:

Take time to be holy,

Speak oft with thy Lord;

Abide in Him always,

And feed on His Word:

Make friends of God’s children,

Help those who are weak;

Forgetting in nothing

His blessing to seek.

2           Take time to be holy,

The world rushes in;

Spend much time in secret

With Jesus alone:

By looking to Jesus

Like Him thou shalt be;

Thy friends in thy conduct

His likeness shall see.

3           Take time to be holy,

Let Him be thy guide,

And run not before Him

Whatever betide;

In joy or in sorrow

Still follow thy Lord,

And looking to Jesus,

Still trust in His Word.

4           Take time to be holy,

Be calm in thy soul;

Each thought and each motive

Beneath His control;

Thus led by His Spirit

To fountains of love,

Thou soon shalt be fitted

For service above.

I like the thought in the first stanza that the reason we are to take time is that a good amount of time should be spent with the Lord.  Spending time with Jesus will change us in such a way that even our friends and family will notice.  Speaking and abiding is the instructon of the author. It moves then to the relational aspect of life, to “make friends of God’s children.” Do we seek to be friends and on friendly terms with God children?  This is a question I want to ask myself everyday.  We should also help the weak and we should always be seeking nothing but the blessing and favor of God.  Perhaps rather that always being concerned about our welfare, we should be involved in compassionate ministry to others.  Much of what ails us today is our preoccupation with ourselves and what we think is our best interests.

He reminds us in the next stanza that the ‘world rushes in.’ We are bombarded by so many things that we must take time to be with the Lord. I find I am spending way too much time with Clinton, Trump and Sanders, and I need to make sure that I am spending sufficient time with the Lord. He should be our guide and we must not run ahead of him.  He reminds us to trust in His Word whether we are having joyous or sorrowful times.  He reminds us in stanza 4, taking time with the Lord, will help us to remain calm in our soul.  Many of my Christian brothers and sisters around the world are living in worse political circumstances than I am presently.  Calm does not come from having all the answers, calmness comes from being in close proximity to the Lord.

Will you join with me on this challenge?  Will you take time to be holy?  There may differing ideas as to how this is accomplished, but I am quite certain that it starts in spending time in His presence.  How about it friends?  Let’s take the time!

One Thought to “Take Time to Be Holy!”

  1. Cindy

    Perfect! I am challenged!

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