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Time Alone Is Time Invested


Dr. James L. Snyder


During the past week, the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and Yours Truly have been spending quite a bit of time together. I cannot recall any time that we have spent this much time together


The exception would be when we first got married. Even then, both of us worked during the day and were going to a Bible Institute at night. Occasionally our schedule collided, but rarely.

It was not long before the babies came knocking on our door, and we graciously invited them in. From then on, time alone was a thing of the past.


Life can sometimes get so busy we forget the important things. My wife and I were thinking about this, this past week. If I live until August, my wife and celebrates our 49th wedding anniversary. How quickly time flies! My only problem is, will I have enough energy to celebrate it then?


Why is it that the older you get, the faster time goes, and the less energy you have to keep up?


This week the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and I had some time to spend together. Everything seemed to shut down, and we had no appointments that we had to get to.

Usually, our conversations revolve around church work and what needs to be done and how we are going to do it.


Since nothing is going on, we had an excellent opportunity to spend time together talking about things not involving work. That is quite a rarity.


We were talking about things that happened years ago, things I had forgotten.

“Do you,” my wife said, “remember…”


Then she tells a story about something that happened decades ago. To be honest, I did not remember several of the stories she was talking about. I smiled and shook my head because she is probably right, and I probably have forgotten something.


This staying at home really does have some good benefits to it. I did not really figure it out until just the other day when we were having lunch together.


Many times our schedule is so busy that we have to grab a bite here and a bite there. Now that we are at home all day, there are some benefits.


I was doing some reading leading up to lunchtime, not thinking about lunch at all. Then the table was set and lunch was prepared. I had forgotten what a marvelous cook she was.

Then there it was on my plate several homemade meatballs surrounded by a pile of homemade Mac & Cheese. The meatballs were exactly the way I like them, and what can I say about the Mac & Cheese?


Everything smelled so delicious and looked so wonderful, I almost forgot to pray for the meal.

When I finished my third serving, I leaned back in my chair and just smiled.

“You know, my dear,” I said with the biggest smile I have ever had, “we should eat at home more often. You simply outdid yourself today.”


I thought about what the apostle Paul said once, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).


The value of any relationship is determined by the amount I am willing to invest in it.

Dr. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of God Fellowship, 1471 Pine Road, Ocala, FL 34472. He lives with his wife in Silver Springs Shores. Call him at 352-216-3025 or e-mail jamessnyder2@att.net. The church web site is www.whatafellowship.com.


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