Every day I am gifted with 86,400 seconds of precious time. I cannot possibly use all of it wisely. But I can invest more of that daily gift into my relationships with God and others. I can’t draw interest on unused time to be used later.

Time is far more valuable than the money we so doggedly pursue. I can lose all my money and make more later. But if I lose my time, it is gone forever. Solomon actually beat me to this message by about three thousand years, give or take. He decided that, all things considered, the best way to live is to enjoy the moment.

After looking at the way things are on this earth, here’s
what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care
of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of
whatever job you have for as long as God gives you
life. And that’s about it. That’s the human lot. Yes, we
should make the most of what God gives, both the
bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s
given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift! God
deals out joy in the present, the now. It’s useless to
brood over how long we might live.
Ecclesiastes 5:18-20, The Message

Not to be maudlin, but that is the reality of this earthly existence. We don’t know if we have tomorrow or even the rest of today. Certainly we must be wise to plan and prepare for a long future. But we must also invest in now, in case that is what we are given.

Maybe the message that resonates the most for me is that we cannot receive postdated grace. We cannot order grace for the future. We receive grace in the now. Grace is God’s greatest gift of my being present with Him. When we are disconnected or distracted, we miss that blessing of real-time grace.

If I had to write a one-sentence summary of what I learned on this odyssey, it would be very simple. Spend focused time with those you love and with your God. Speaker-writer Zig Ziglar wrote about spending time with loved ones.

“One of these days you will say either, ‘I wish I had,’ or ‘I’m glad I did.’”

How heartbreaking would it be to find yourself at the end of this pilgrimage with the regret of “I wish I had” roiling in your soul? My heart’s desire is that I will gratefully say, “I’m glad I did.” If you want to give the very best present to your spouse, kids, friends, and God, the grace challenge is simple.

Be present.

I have never forgotten what entrepreneur Mary Crowley said to me when we were discussing the challenge of parenting. Mary said she had one regret. “I wish I had answered at the first tug.” That is simply being present.

If a friend is suffering, you can show no greater love than to simply be there for him or her. Not offering great theological insight or stories of your own or other’s suffering. Just to be present.

When you talk to a friend, be present. Not looking around as if your friend is merely a temporary diversion before someone more compelling comes along. That is the best thing we can give to others. Nothing makes a person feel more valued than being fully present.

Being present is the best worship we can give to God. We can sing and raise hands in worship to God, and that is good. We can talk about His love and forgiveness, and that is good. But nothing communicates our adoration for God more than being fully present with Him.

The enemy will remind you over and over of all that needs to be done. He will remind you of past wounds and failures. It would be wise to remember a couple of things at this point. Jesus has experienced exactly what you are going through right now. He was tempted in the desert by Satan. He was tired, hungry, and lonely. Jesus experienced this trio of circumstances that often cause me to yield to temptation, and He conquered them with a simple strategy. Jesus focused on the Father and rebuked Satan with Scripture. First Jesus was tempted to gratify His extreme hunger by turning the stones into bread. Then the Accuser taunted Jesus to prove His divine status by throwing Himself off the Temple and to be rescued by attending angels. The Message colorfully describes the third temptation of Jesus.

For the third test, the Devil took him to the peak of a
huge mountain. He gestured expansively, pointing out
all the earth’s kingdoms, how glorious they all were.
Then he said, “They’re yours—lock, stock, and barrel.
Just go down on your knees and worship me, and
they’re yours.”
Jesus’ refusal was curt: “Beat it, Satan!”

I cannot tell you how much I love the image of Jesus turning to the enemy and telling him to “beat it.”

The story continues. He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from
Deuteronomy:

“Worship the Lord your God, and only him. Serve him with absolute single-
heartedness.” The Test was over. The Devil left. And in his place, angels! Angels came and took care of Jesus’ needs. Matthew 4:8-11, The Message

There is so much good stuff in those verses. Jesus’ rebuke was backed by the Word of God. That gave authority to the command to “beat it.” I can have a colleague tell me that I should complete a task at work. I may or may not do it. I can have a peer tell me. I may or may not respond. But when the boss tells me to do it, the job will certainly get done. He or she has authority. I am under that authority to obey, unless I make the bad choice of not responding, which may mean I will be looking for another job. That is what was going on here. Satan has power, but it is limited. God has the authority, and Jesus simply used that power.

Serve Him with absolute single-heartedness. Be present. We cannot multitask and be fully present with God.

Some anonymous person summed it up perfectly. People who have a lot of money and no time we call “rich.” People who have time but no money we call “poor.” Yet the most precious gifts—love,friendship, time with loved ones—grow only in the sweet soil of unproductive time.

The world might call quiet moments of presence with God and others unproductive time. I am learning that there is no more productive way we can spend our time. Everything that truly matters springs from that presence-enriched soil.

My heavenly Father is always present. I just need to show up for Him. That is the essence of spiritual growth for me. Just showing up in humility every day, seeking His presence.

I will stumble in this journey to be present. I probably will need a refresher course often. But I am confident beyond confident of one truth that Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, which is true for you and me today.

I am certain that God, who began the good work within
you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on
the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Philippians 1:6

I am waking up slowly in this life. But one day, fairly soon, I will wake up glorified. I believe the epithet written on Ruth Graham’s tombstone will also describe my journey: “End of construction—thank you for your patience.”

Excerpts from Waking Up Slowly