A Time To Pause

By: Jenifer Metzger

There is a time for everything

And a season for every activity under the sun.

Ecclesiastes 3:1

Ecclesiastes goes on to tell us that there is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, and the list goes on. While this chapter does not specifically say a time to pause, I think God intends for us to do just that.

Several years ago, eight to be exact, we were prepping to begin our homeschool year. The night before our first day, we all went to bed just a few minutes early, trying to get a good night sleep to get a great start to the year. The kids are all tucked in and the house is quiet. I take the new devotional I have and climb into my bed to read for a few moments. Thirty minutes later, when I thought the kids had likely dozed off, my 16 year old daughter comes into my room and asked me to braid her hair so that it would have a curl to it in the morning. The words that climbed to the tip of my tongue were, "Are you kidding? Could you not have asked me that before bed? Go to bed now!" But God grabbed my heart as I looked at my girl, starting her junior year this week. And I paused.

I said yes.

She climbed into my bed and sat there for me to braid her beautiful, long hair. As I did, I cherished the time brushing her hair as I did when she was little.

Braiding my girl's hair only took a couple of minutes. It didn't throw our entire life off course. It didn't put a strain on our schedule. I am so thankful that God grabbed me and told me to pause for these moments. My heart needed it.

In the rush of life, what can you pause for today? To give your husband an intimate hug showing him you love him? To look your son in the eye and tell him that you are proud of him? To look your daughter in the eye and say she is beautiful? To tell someone thank you? To lend a helping hand? To enjoy a sunrise? To look at the clouds and see the artistry of God?

I want to encourage you to pause each day for the little moments. Enjoy them. Cherish them.

Discussion:
1. Do you struggle with rushing through and forget to pause for the little moments?
2. What can you do to remind yourself to pause and cherish these moments?