I love books in fact I love information — however it comes to me. Until now, it has mostly been in the form of books. I attend many conferences and in the large group atmosphere of a convention/conference I enjoy the ritualistic visit to vendors who ply the tools of the trade — which often includes books. In my case, it is the trade of Faith.
At last year's United Methodist General Conference I collected my usual share of books, and since I never have the time to read all the books I collect, they usually sit on a shelf in my library until the occasion comes for them to be used. Recently as I looked around for other books to use for an impending meeting, the title of a book sitting in an unpacked box caught my attention: TOO BUSY NOT TO PRAY.
I had been thinking of the rigorous and tight schedule I had been following of late. Still trying to settle into a reasonable routine in this new place, I sometimes pray on the run. "Lord you know how busy I am, so in the midst of all the things I am responsible for, I am asking that you put some order into my life and forgive me for not stopping to pray."
That title brought me back to reality. TOO BUSY NOT TO PRAY. None of us should be too busy to pray, for prayer is our lifeline. In fact, what author Bill Hybels (who incidentally pastors one of the nation's largest churches, located in Illinois) was saying in that book is that the busier we are the more we need to pray — especially those of us who are leaders in the Christian faith.
Hybels himself admits that there were times in his life when he thought he was too busy to pray; times when his prayers seem hollow; times when he did not know what to say to God.
But through realizing that he could not face the challenges confronting him alone, that he could accomplish far more if he connected with the divine power that created and sustains us, he began again to have a disciplined prayer time with amazing results.
Sometimes the lure of the world gets to us — even pastors. We sometimes feel an obligation to be all things to all people, forgetting that our business is God's business and that Godpower is ultimate, far more than we could ever possess by ourselves.
When we take time to be alone with God, to just sit and listen to God, we find that we come away from that time with clearer minds, with guidance for everything and anything we might face.
God loves each of us and delights to hear from us, Hybels says. And Jesus reminded us that if we seek first God's kingdom, all necessary things would be added to our lives. So no matter how busy we might be, we should always find time to pray, and somehow the ten minutes we set aside for God each day expands to a delightful twenty, then thirty and soon we find that we don't want the day to go by unless we have first checked in with heaven.