Wisdom from Mother

The following article written by my mother, Earla Dombach, was probably written between 1955-1960 and was published in Millersville Echoes, a newsletter of Millersville Mennonite Church. Those of us who knew her well would agree that she practiced what she wrote.

GIVING OF TIME

Giving of our time is one of the hardest things for us as Christians to do. We are so busy, we think, that we often feel we should do differently, but we don't have the time. Getting up a half hour earlier so we have time for Bible reading and prayer can prove to be a well-spent half hour and can prove itself to be a great blessing. For when we meet God in the morning, He goes with us throughout the day. Taking time for family worship is also a great blessing. This is especially true when your child is faced with a problem and he knows you prayed about it as a family. Even in the midst of baking your preschooler comes and takes your hand and says, "Mama, come look," do we go with them only to find it's just a dandelion flower? Do we take time to tell them of God's creation? Do we show appreciation for the weed flowers that are always in our home? Or when your elementary school child asks why everything must have a daddy, do we brush him off and not take the time to explain the simple facts of life? Or when those teenagers come home from school with problems that seem like such a little thing, do we sit down and help them or are we too busy? Do we have time to sit down and listen to the interesting little things that happen to our children during the day or evening? Taking time with the children, encouraging them, and giving them the assurance that we are praying for them gives much satisfaction, especially when they tell you, "Thanks, Mom. I knew you'd have time to listen." These little acts of thoughtfulness make a child happy and then we, too, are happy. What about that letter you meant to write to someone who needed sympathy and understanding, that visit to the sick and aged, that word of encouragement you meant to give that Sunday School pupil? Did you take time to stop and chat with the friend whose burdens were so heavy that they needed you to just sit and listen? "Oh, I didn't have time," you say. But just a moment to listen, send her away with a smile, and her load was lighter because you took time to lend a sympathetic ear. Are our homes open to our children's friends? Do our children feel free to bring their friends in and spend the evening in our home? Do we see through the eyes of our children? "Read me a story, Mommy," they cry. "I'm too busy." What a disappointed look on the face that was all smiles a minute ago. Even teenagers like to listen because they understand it better when Mother reads it. How many blessings do we lose when we don't give our time to others. I can truthfully say I received many blessings when I gave my time to others, but often I have been rebuked for not giving my time because I thought I was too busy. It's not the big things in life that count; it's the time we take to share with others that really counts. If our Lord had time to receive a visitor by night after a hard day's work, we, too, must be willing to give our time that others may be encouraged to go forth. It's the little things that will mean so much in eternity.

I have only just a minute,
Only sixty seconds in it
Forced upon me--can't refuse it
Didn't seek it, didn't choose it.
But it's up to me to use it.
I must suffer if I lose it,
Give account if I abuse it
Just a tiny little minute--

But ETERNITY is in it.