I’ve Got To Get There On Time!

Today I'm taking a short break from the "Heart of Worship" series – more on that tomorrow.

As I was preparing to leave for the office this morning, I was thinking about how much harder it is for me to get up during the winter months. I grew up in West Tennessee, where during this time the sun comes up around 7 in the morning. Now that I'm living in East Tennessee, and on the western edge of the Eastern Time zone, the sun doesn't come up until… nearly 7:45! What an amazing difference that 45 minutes makes in my day.

Sometimes, especially during the winter, it's hard for me to get up out of bed and get going every morning at a respectable time. That got me to thinking though, about my motivation for getting up. What is it that drives me and keeps me from just laying in bed? Answer: I have a deep interest and zeal for what I am doing.

It's funny how being extremely interested in something can be a motivating factor. When someone is going on vacation, they don't arrive at the airport just before the plane leaves. NO, they are motivated to leave at 5:30 in the morning to arrive at the airport at 6 so that they can catch an 8:30 flight. The same thing is true for sporting events. How many people show up at the stadium (take for instance, Neyland Stadium in Knoxville) just a few moments before the game begins. Who would have the audacity to show up late for such a thing? Anyone who has ever been to Knoxville on game day knows that the campus is flooded in orange hours before the game begins.

You say, well those are "one time" things. They don't happen very often, so it's easier to find motivation. Really? What about school? Do most parents consistently take their children to school late? No, because there are a couple of motivating factors – education and avoiding truancy. Parents routinely wake up at 6 a.m. to send their kids off to school. They may even prepare for it the night before. What about our jobs? How often could we show up late and be able to keep them?

No, we don't have a problem getting up and going in this country, as long as we have a motivating factor. It only leads me to wonder – why are so many people late to worship?

Colossians 3:2 - "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."