Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
– Matthew 6:19-21
This passage has been on my mind frequently this week. On the surface, I can boastfully tell myself that I am definitely not trying to build treasure upon the earth. If I were, I wouldn’t have quit a high paying job 13 years ago. But that’s not enough. Yes, that was what the Lord called me to do then. And He still wants me at home. But not having riches on earth does not automatically mean I’m laying up treasures in heaven.
I can truthfully say that I am with my children most of their waking hours. But what am I doing during those hours? How much of my time am I wasting in useless pursuits? How much of the time when my baby looks up at my face does he see the back of my iPod Touch? How many times do I tell my little daughter I’ll be with her in just a minute when I finish with something else? How much time do I spend with my children?
Yes, I do work on the computer. I consider my job a blessing from God that enables me to make some needed money without physically leaving my children. But it’s really hard to separate time spent from working from time just wasted. It’s very easy to forget why I’m home. God has blessed me with this family. They’re my treasure. They are where my heart should be. The way I spend my time should better reflect that.
I’d love for suggestions on how to better manage my time spent on-line? Should I schedule time and set a timer? Other ideas?
This post is a part of Issue 24 of The Christian Home, posted weekly at The Legacy of Home.
By Kristen H.
I’ve been thinking some of these very thoughts this past week. One thing I did was to rid myself of “non-essentials”, like Facebook and Twitter. I blogged about this if you’re interested. I think we (I) tend to think we can’t live w/o social networking but we certainly can (I’m still alive and kicking! lol). Then I consolidated email addresses. From there, I definitely think “scheduling” internet time is a great idea. I believe there are on-line timers that will log you off after a set amount of time. I know the Lord will show you what will work best for YOU as you seek His face!