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Sunday, September 14, 2008

red lights

I once read that Americans will spend six months of their life sitting at red lights…waiting. That’s over 4,000 hours that we’ll spend just sitting! Imagine how much more productive we could be if we had those 4,000 hours to do other things. If you think about it, a large portion of our lives revolves around waiting. We wait in line at the drive thru, wait in line at the store, wait in line to use the bathroom, wait in line to use a dressing room; we wait when early for an appointment, we wait when others are running late, we wait to be seated at a restaurant and then wait to order our food and to get it. We wait for that new movie to be released, we wait for that expected letter in the mail, we wait for a special holiday to arrive, that promised phone call – we wait, we wait and then we wait some more! We also wait on God. We wait for Him to reveal His plans to us and we wait on Him to answer our prayers. Yet I’ve learned that we can’t merely do nothing while we wait. It was once pointed out to me that the word ‘wait’ is a verb, implying action. Waiting doesn’t mean we put our lives on hold until everything is aligned perfectly. Waiting means going through our day-to-day routines and in the back of our minds, we’re eagerly waiting in anticipation for that thing we desire. We can’t allow ourselves to become so wrapped up in waiting that we miss out on what’s right before us. If we are constantly saying, “Oh, I can’t wait for _________” then we’re wishing away the now in exchange for the later. We don’t want to wake up one day and ask ourselves, “Where did the time go?” We only have one shot at this thing called life and we don’t need to spend it living from big event to big event. In between those big events are little events called life and we need to savor those like our next breath.

I want to end each entry with something funny, hence the "with a side of laughter." We were talking about Chuck Norris the other day and here are some facts you may not know:
~ If you have five dollars and Chuck Norris has five dollars, Chuck Norris has more money than you.
~ There is no 'ctrl' button on Chuck Norris' computer. Chuck Norris is always in control.
~ Chuck Norris can sneeze with his eyes open.
~ Chuck Norris can eat just one Lay's potato chip.
~ Chuck Norris destroyed the periodic table because he only recognizes the element of surprise.

1 comment:

  1. Great point, Amber, although a bit depressing to see the 6 months figure. I hate to wait and even more so after reading the first of this. As cliche as it may sound life is what happens in between all the big events. Because trust me, you will wake up one morning and say where did time go and that time will pass whether you actively take the time to savor it or not. Enjoy the moments and make memories even out of the small things. God can only use you if you are making some sort of action or movement. Life is not about floating along passively.

    I don't think I can even comment on your Chuck Norris remarks.!!

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