Crazy Time

They tell you in college you should be doing 2-3 hours of studying, reading, and homework for every hour that you are in class.  This semester, I am in 17 credit hours and in class for about 20 hours per week.  (I have lab classes that are 1 or 2 credit hours but meet for a total of 3-4 hours each week)  I recently did the math to learn how much free time I had.  First, let's say that there are 6 days in a work week, in order to give myself a Sabbath.  This means that there are 144 hours in a work week.  If I sleep 8 hours a night, am in class for 20 hours a week, study 40 hours a week, and work my part time job for 10 hours, this leaves me with 4 and 1/3 hours a day to make food, eat, shower, chill with friends, volunteer, travel between locations on campus, go to club meetings, blog, and just recharge doing any other recreational activities.

This is super interesting to me.  Quite simply, I do not sleep for 8 hours every night.  Nor did I feel that I had time to volunteer at the after school program this week that I like to volunteer at.  Nor did I talk to my parents.  I also did a pretty bad job of having a meaningful prayer and Bible-reading time with God this week.  Why?  Because it requires a daily commitment.  An hourly commitment.

Saying that I'm walking with God is easy.  Actually walking with him is another.  I like to spend a daily time in prayer and Bible reading.  I call this my 'devotions.'  But am I really devoted to these things?  Am I devoted to living a life for God?  I just broke down that I am (or know that I should be) spending 60 hours a week doing academic work.  This is a life choice.  It's a choice that I am glad that I've made.  How many hours a week am I working toward growing in God?

Something that I've remembered lately is that everything I do needs to be for Him.  Right now, He is calling me to be a student.  Because of that, I should be the very best student that I can be.  I also need to remember that while I'm working and studying.  My motivation shouldn't be a good grade or a raise at work.  My motivation to do my best should be bring glory to God.

He has made me aware that this is something I need to work on.  It is something that I will be working on for my entire life.  It is easy to forget about the true focal point, but the picture is much more beautiful when you're focused on the right thing.

The foreground of this picture is clear, the fence is well-defined.  The gorgeous mountains behind it, however are not in focus, so you miss much of the potential beauty in the photo.  

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.

Colossians 3:1-2

Living in Reckless Abandonment for Jesucristo,

Jo

Warning: The Cheesiness of this Analogy is Overwhelming

I went on a trip to Indianapolis with my church this weekend.  It was from Friday evening through Saturday morning, and it was a great chance to connect with new people and just enjoy some time away from the academic world of studying.  On the drive back, I asked a friend of mine what I should blog about for this week.  Her reply: You should blog about cheese.

I sat there for a moment trying to think of the various things and memories that I knew about cheese.  Friday night I had sat with a few new acquaintances and we had combined Cheez Its with the filling from Oreo cookies (not as bad as you may think).  I also ate cheese puffs on Friday.  For supper, I had a salad that had a little bit of cheese sprinkled on it.  But as I thought about cheese, the thing that my brain flashed back to was a skit from the old Carol Burnett show (Yes, I know that I should be too young to remember it, but my parents raised me on the classics!).

There was a skit with Tim Conway from the Carol Burnett show where he has to weigh a half pound of cheese.  I found a video of the whole skit on YouTube, and it is below.  If you're in a hurry, the part that  I will be referencing is from 8:55 to 11:00, although it's all pretty funny.

Basically the butcher has the whole block of cheese and can play it like a flute.  Then, when there is only a little of bit of cheese, the customer tries to blow through it and can't bring out a single note.  While using cheese as a flute probably isn't all that realistic, it does create an interesting analogy about the body of Christ. 

One of the things that we really focused on during the road trip was how important having community is.  In order to serve God, we need every single piece of God's body.  We also have to be willing to be vulnerable with each other and be our true selves when we are together.  This is messy, and it can be difficult to show your true self at all times.  It can also feel burdensome to let people see your rough edges.  In the end though, when we all come together as the body of Christ, or as one block of cheese, we experience a kind of community that is without description.  It' a kind of community that can't be broken down.  When one part hurts, the other part hurts.  And when one part rejoices, the whole body can dance (or be a cool cheese block flute).

  For just as each of us has one body with members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

Romans 12:4-5

Living in Reckless Abandonment for Jesucristo,

Jo

F.y.I.  I know I've missed 2 weeks in a row on my blogs.  Once I figure out a day when I consistently have time, I will hopefully start blogging once a week again.