"Spare" Time

"Spare" Time-All my time is spare in the sense that I don't have job
commitments, family commitments or other commitments that take up a good
portion of my time. What I consider "spare" time is any activity that is not
God-related somehow. Things that help to pass time for me but are not
essential like reading the Bible, praying, going to church,etc.

One activity that takes up a fair bit of my time is writing e-mails. Because
any
kind of writing is, for me, a slow, lengthy process, I can usually pass an
hour or so writing just one medium length e-mail. (Because the blogs are a
lot longer, I write them on two separate days. A couple of hours one day and
finish it a couple of days later.) Despite being so time-consuming, I enjoy
writing e-mails. It is a way of being in touch and talking to people. Over
the years, I have reconnected with four of my cousins whom I haven't seen
since we were children. I also write to friends including two from
university, a LONG time ago, and a lady that I used to teach with, also a
long time ago. Then there are nurses who don't work here anymore. I use my
e-mail talk to my kids, though those e-mails are usually shorter. Anyway,
you get the picture. Writing e-mails takes up a lot of my "spare" time.

I have always been an avid reader. I still am, only now I have to do all my
reading on my computer. Aside from all the Bible reading I do, in my "spare"
time I like to read classic English literature. I figure that this is a good
time to read a lot of books that I know by name but have never taken time to
read.

I sometimes feel like I spend too much time watching tv. I do limit myself
to the evenings when I don't have the energy to even read. Years ago, I also
used to sometimes watch in the afternoons to pass time. Until the Holy
Spirit told me that it was too much tv to watch both afternoon and evening.
So I altogether cut out watching tv in the afternoon. Now, I mostly watch
sports, though sometimes I find an interesting documentary to watch. One
time, I asked the Lord if I should be watching so many sports. He said to
keep watching but also to pray for the players. Which I do most of the time. I
admit, though, that there are times that I get so interested in the game
that I forget.

My final "spare time" activitiy is to go out. When I go out, I mostly go
out, it is to church or church related activities. However, I go other
places as well. One of my favorite things to do is to eat out. Different
food is a real treat for me. But I go other places as well. I now travel in
a van that my friend and her husband, bless them, bought especially for my
use. It allows me a lot more freedom in the places I go.

When I talk about "spare time", it almost sounds like I consider my time
with God to be work. Not at all. It is just that that is how I spend the
majority of my time. But, whether it is time with God or "spare time", my
main objective is anything that will distract my thoughts from my dismal
circumstances.