Last week in this slot Raymond asked you all some very good questions. I hope you took some time to ponder on them. I thought it was very relevant with what we have been focusing on through the Lent programme and especially the calendars and ideas of things that we can do other than what you may normally spend your time on.

In my last message, which was based on the beatitudes, there was a part that I left out, given the time restraints, so I was thinking, after what Raymond had challenged us with last week I would include it in this slot this week.

Most people have heard of Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia that anyone can edit. It is a wealth of information and takes many hours of people's time, energy and thought to make it what it is. So, here is something to think about because we often hear people say, "I would love to do this or that but I just don't have time. I know, because I have said it before many times. So, what would you do if I said I could find you an extra 7 hours each week. The question is, 'what would you do with it?'

The amount of thought energy and time that goes into Kiwis watching TV each year is equivalent to the same amount of energy, research and time that goes into producing 40 Wikipedias each year. That is huge. In fact it is astronomical. On average every person in NZ watches 168 min or 2.8 hours of TV per day.

Now if every Kiwi who currently say they attend church on a regular basis, which is once a month, were to give up 1 hour of TV per day, that's 7 hours a week, just imagine how much energy, time and thought could be available to increase the Kingdom Of God. That's equivalent to producing 3 Wikipedias per year. And if you were engaging your gifts and passions you would not be bored.

So what do we do with our discretionary time? Sure, you could sit around and be entertained by the square box in the corner and complain about being bored, or you could get out the calendar, spend some time working out what you could do during this lent period, find the right sticker and place it on the days where you have some time to spare and then determine in your heart to do something different. The choice is yours. Maybe some of that time could be spent dwelling on what the larger rocks are that you might like to place in your glass container.

Just a thought.

Blessings

Pastor Steve Clark