From time to time we all find ourselves in situations we wish we could escape because they are a waste our time. Perhaps its a social function or a committee meeting you volunteered to participate in but now you really wish you hadn’t. What can you do in those cases?
Sometimes it may be impossible for you to tactfully escape. And certainly if you have given your word you should keep it and do what you’ve promised. But in other cases the most God-honoring thing to do is to politely excuse yourself and move on to something else. God holds us accountable for our time and He expects us to use it well.
So, next time you get caught in an over-long meeting or trapped into the second hour of your neighbor’s home videos, just remember, learning to gracefully excuse yourself from time wasting activities is not being rude, its redeeming the time.
Rick Grubbs is best known as the host of “Redeeming the Time,” a one-minute radio program featured on hundreds of radio outlets around the world. He has spoken thousands of times on Biblical time management in all 50 states and 26 other countries. He is the author of the book “Morning Momentum: God’s plan for launching an unstoppable day”. He and his wife Carrie live in Salisbury NC with several of their 12 children.