Don’t Waste Enjoying Your Life
In the spring of 1986, Ferris Bueller took a day off of school. In fact, he took nine days off that year and reminded the world that although life is serious, it is meant to be enjoyed. His thinking is beautifully summed up in the most famous quote from the movie, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
I don’t know you personally, but you probably need to slow down. You are spending so much time trying to get somewhere other than where you are. I know this is because you are scared of missing it. You are scared of missing out on the best of what life has to offer. But what if in your busyness, you already missed it? What if, in your pursuit of not wasting your life, you have missed the life you were trying not to waste?
Even if you wanted to slow down, how would you do it? How do you learn to stop in a culture that constantly says go? I suggest beginning to live day-by-day in what author Zack Eswine calls the “four portions.” Much like our calendar year is made up of four separate seasons, he argues that our days are made up of four separate times. These portions give us a chance to pause and look to God four times throughout the day to remember what life is about and how it is meant to be lived.
These pauses are given to us throughout the Psalms as God’s reminder that He is God and we are not:
Evening and morning and noon
I cry out in distress
And he hears my voice.
Psalm 55:17
Eswine further explains the 4 portions throughout the day like this:
1.Morning (Sunrise – 12:00pm) – In the morning, we stop & look for God’s grace
The mornings are for God’s grace. Each morning brings with it the newness of the day and the newness of God’s grace. God’s grace like a new day is a gift from above. It would do us well to pause and remember that it is no small thing to be alive in this world. Before you start your day, before the emails pour in, and the notifications demand our attention, stop and remember God’s grace and the sheer gift of life in Christ.
2. Noon (12:00 pm – 6:00 pm) - In the afternoon, we stop & look for God’s wisdom
The afternoons are for God’s wisdom. This is the portion of our day that work has to get done, deadlines are due, and decisions must be made. After lunch, we need to stop and remember that the demands of life are exhausting without the strength of the Lord’s wisdom.
3. Evening (6:00 pm - Bedtime) – In the evening, we stop & look for God’s hospitality
The evenings are for God’s hospitality. This is the portion of the day where we pause from work and move that energy into enjoying the goodness of God with others. Most of the memories you have in this life are probably around a meal surrounded by the people you love. It would be wise for us to pause before the evening hits to remember what this last portion of our day is about: enjoying life with others.
4. Night (Bedtime - Morning) – In the night, we stop & look for solitude with God
The nights are for God’s solitude. Night can be hard because it is the only time throughout the day we are truly alone. It is no surprise that we often go to bed with our phones, letting the glow of the screen attempt to take our worries away. The night was meant for you to be alone, but to have solitude with God. A time right before you go to sleep, where you can stop to give your burdens, cares, worries, and struggles of the day over to Him.
Hopefully, that will give you a place to start. This week, try slowing down around these four portions of the day. During these times, take 5 minutes to pause, pray, and bring God into the realities of your life. Slowing down might feel like death, but let the world run unhindered with its busyness, exhaustion, and joyless urgency. At the end of it all, I don’t think you’re going to miss a thing. Just don’t waste your life by not taking the time to slow down and enjoy it.
1: For more on the “four portions” see Zack Eswine, The Imperfect Pastor (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015), 169-186.