Time is Valuable

Over the last several weeks the hours in the day seemed to be passing too quickly.  Time spent with others seemed to be rushed in order to make it to the next appointment or meeting. I don't like that feeling. I hate to feel like I have to watch the clock when I'm with other people. I knew it was time to slow down.

When a friend heard I had cleared my schedule for two days to take a break, they decided to give me the perfect gift...their time.  I'm an extrovert and sitting on my couch staring at the wall is by no means relaxing to me. So this friend planned an entire afternoon to hang out and do things I love to do. Nothing fancy or elaborate just time together.

To me time is one of the most valuable things I have. When I give someone even a few minutes of my time, it means something significant to me. To me it is a way to show that I care about and value you. So for someone to give me an entire afternoon, that speaks volumes to me.

It is obvious to me I needed to be reminded to be cautious of how I spend my time. I know I tend to squeeze as much life as possible out of every minute. But this week I was reminded of just how valuable time is and that sometimes the best thing you can do with it is just be.


I discovered I posted about this same topic just over a year ago. Interesting.

Spring Retreat Reflections

 
A couple weeks ago 13 Impact students and Lowell piled in a van and I piled into my car full of luggage and we drove to Kings Mountain, KY for our annual Spring Retreat. We had an incredible time enjoying the beauty of God's creation and learning about what it looks like to remove our masks and live our lives completely surrendered to God.

I've waited so long to post about the retreat because I've been trying to process the experience myself. To sum up the entire experience I think it is best to say we all found ourselves being very honest about how God created us and how we view ourselves. I really enjoyed watching students start to embrace different personality traits that they may have originally thought were negative qualities. I'm even more excited to see students discover how God uses the unique ways he has created them to reach out to others.

There are so many other wonderful stories about what happened at that weekend. Watching students worship in a different church setting then they are use to and completely loving it. Exploring creeks, waterfalls and woods, climbing rocks and seeing students conquer fears in the process. Taking steps towards Christ with students. And one of my personal favorites sitting with a student as he decides to accept Christ and surrender his entire life our God.

It was a great trip and a beautiful encounter with our Creator!