time change

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This Deadline Didn’t Phase Me One Bit

This year I was ready well in advance of the deadline and it made my day seamless.

this deadline didn't phase me one bit

Maybe you are in the habit of having your work done well in advance. Maybe when you have a project or task assigned to you, you get right on it and beat the deadline by days or weeks.

I’m on a committee right now where we have to recruit people to participate in a number of review committees. 

At our first meeting one of my colleagues had already recruited 75 percent of his total and was just waiting to hear back from the last 25 percent. I, on the other hand, had recruited one person and only one other as a potential recruit. 

I guess what I’m saying is I am not normally the guy who gets right on things and ties them all up well before they need to be done. I’m usually the guy who knows the date when something needs to be done and will be working until that date on the calendar comes. 

I’m not really sure why that is. 

I do know that I don’t feel motivated when there is so much time between now and the deadline. Maybe I need a little pressure to get moving on things. 

I remember a TV show that was kind of based on that principle. The show was called, “Name That Tune”. Contestants would bid against each other to see how few notes they could hear before naming the tune. When it got down to two or three notes, well, the pressure was on and the contestant had to perform.

Last fall I did something that set me up to not be pressured this weekend. What I did back then meant I didn’t have to lift a finger at the deadline. What I did was not change the time on the clock on my bedside table.

From the end of October until now I’ve been looking at that clock every morning and it has always been one hour ahead. 

Now there were a few times I woke up, looked at my clock and got a little startled. … When your head is still thick from sleep, the mental processing takes a second to kick in. 

But the thought that I was an hour late getting up was only momentary. Then I would smile and close my eyes for a moment longer … much like when you wake up on Saturday morning thinking it’s another work day. When you realize it’s your day off, you just chuckle to yourself and calm right down.

Well, on Saturday night I didn’t have to do a thing. I was ready for Daylight Savings Time. 

And you know what? I really like the feeling of not having to change my clock. 

I think we should just stop the time change all together. We should stay on the same time all year long. Then no one would show up late for church because they didn’t make the time change deadline. 

Ya … it happens every year.

Here’s the thing: This world will one day come to a quick end. We can see the signs in natural disasters, super power tensions, wars and rumours of wars. The Bible says this will all come before the end. But you know what? We can prepare ourselves well in advance by having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Place your faith in Christ and you won’t miss that deadline.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you kept putting off because you don’t feel the pressure yet? Leave your comments and questions below.

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My Days Are Getting Longer

The best part of early spring is how the days just keep getting longer and longer.

My Days Are Getting Longer

One thing I really like after the time change is how much later it stays light out in the evenings. It’s a big deal for me. 

For people who lived before there was electricity, they must have been ecstatic. They had so much more time to do things, to get things done. During one part of the year they would be shutting things down around 5 pm, but as the days got longer they could extend their work to 7 or 8 pm and later.

I remember when we lived in Edmonton and in the summer we could still be on the golf course at 10 pm! 

There were, however, some downsides … like when we ran summer camps. We wanted to end each day with a camp fire, but there is something lost when you’re sitting around the fire with the sun still high in the sky! 

Though the daylight is now extending later, I’m finding that my days are getting longer as well.

During this time when people are working from home, some not working at all, and others practicing self-isolation or forced isolation, there is less work being accomplished. 

More and more stores and businesses are restricting hours or closing their doors altogether. 

There is less that we can do. The normally busy parents, chauffeuring their children from one club or activity to another, have all stopped. 

For many people their days of work and activity are less. The light is increasing, but we have more time on our hands. … But that’s not what I’m experiencing right now. 

As the sun-filled skies linger longer into the evening, I find that my work is keeping pace with the ever-increasing light of day.

Some of the reasons my days are getting longer is that I’m having to learn new things right now to address the current COVID-19 conditions we are facing. 

There are also a number of different tasks or jobs I’m having to add to my day. 

I’m feeling a little like a green garbage bag. You know, there is always a little more you can stuff into one of them … the plastic stretches to make room.

It’s a huge contrast to when I’m on vacation. On vacation, I get up and decide what the one big thing is that I will do that day – maybe go to the beach, or hike a trail to a hidden lake. Everything else in the day then supports that main activity in one way or another. 

Right now, unfortunately, I need to make sure my list is constantly in front of me and that it is up-to-date so I don’t miss something important. 

Right now, all I know is that there is a part of me that wishes the days were getting shorter.

Here’s the thing: Whether your days are getting longer or have been shortened for the time being, be sure that on your list for each day is time with God. It is easy to get busy with work or busy with other things. At this time especially, don’t neglect time with God … and pray that He puts a halt to the coronavirus. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How will you make sure God is a big part of your day at this time? Leave your comments and questions below.

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This Time Change Is Really Affecting My Rhythm

I never really noticed how the time change affected me before, but my sleeping sure has been altered in the last two nights.

I like the fall change because you get an extra hour of sleep … or at least that’s the theory.

In reality, it’s a license to stay up an hour longer … but even that turns into more like two hours.

So I actually get less sleep but only half as much less sleep than if I had stayed up two hours later the night before the time change.

I usually like to get to bed early on Saturday night because I have to preach the next morning. I don’t know why, but this Saturday night I was wide awake, so I stayed up a little longer than I should have.

For some crazy reason, however, I woke up way earlier than normal – at 4:30 a.m.! And I’m not that guy who gets up by my internal clock. I need an alarm or I would keep sleeping.

I just lay there going over my sermon in my head. By the time 6 a.m. rolled around and it was time to get up, I had basically rehearsed my whole sermon in my mind.

If you’re doing the math, no, I don’t preach for an hour and a half; there were gaps and times I struggled to remember what came next.

Surprisingly, when I got up, I didn’t feel tired or like I hadn’t gotten much sleep that night. I did, however, take a rather long nap Sunday afternoon.

I thought it was a fluky thing until this morning. Again I woke up very early, and again I rolled around in bed, this time without a sermon to keep my mind occupied.

I thought of random things for about an hour until my alarm went off and it was time for me to get up.

Now I’m thinking that the time change has affected my sleeping patterns and I hoping it won’t last too long.

I also found out that this time change is a lot more dangerous than I ever imagined it would be.

It turns out there are more accidents on the roads the Monday after a time change.

And then there are the physical problems! Apparently studies show there are more heart attacks, strokes are more frequent, and cases of depression and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) also rise.

… Not to mention headaches for those who suffer from them.

They say it all has to do with our circadian rhythm being disrupted. Your circadian rhythm regulates your 24-hour internal clock and it does it based on light.

I don’t know much about all that stuff but I want my rhythm back before something disastrous happens!

Here’s the thing: There are many things that can disrupt your walk with God. It might be sleep, it could be sin, or it could be some distraction that you are focussing on. My advice is to stick with a routine of meeting with God, continue to confess your sin, keep praising Him, keep looking into the scriptures for what He’s saying to you. You will get your rhythm back. Check out what Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message by Eugene Peterson); its all right there:

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What gets you out of your rhythm with God? Leave your comments below.