Winning the Battle for a Generation by: Pastor Rick Jones
Early into my ministry, I discovered an important life-altering, life-saving principle, “to take time to unwind and relax.” I would often come home from my evening ministry meetings with young people all wound up, so much so that I could not come home and go to sleep.
Quite often the experiences of an evening ministering to a large number of young people whose lives were broken and in need of change, were things that consumed my mind and heart as I traveled home.
When I got home my wife and I would often take long walks, talking about the events of the day, praying for the young people who had entered our lives and filled our hearts with love and concern for them. With my wife’s help, we redeemed the precious remaining time of the day, unwinding and resting in God’s presence and peace. Do you take time to unwind, relax?
There was a time in our culture when everyone had some “down-time,” some time to “unwind and relax.” It as in the twilight of that era of culture that Charles Tandy came up an idea to help fill the leisure time of people with his “do it yourself electronic store,” Radio Shack. Preachingtoday.com carried an article on Tandy’s Radio Shack that helped explain what has taken the giant electronic store into bankruptcy.
In 1963 Charles D. Tandy opened a nine-store chain that promised to provide supplies for electronic do-it-yourselfers. Tandy explained, “Leisure time is opening markets to us. The shorter workweek, human curiosity, idle hands—all offer opportunities in this business. Everyone’s spare time is our challenge.” At its peak, Radio Shack had 7,000 stores. But what Mr. Tandy couldn’t know was that the real challenge his company would eventually face was the slow erosion of the very leisure time his company profited from by filling. The company, now known as Radio Shack, filed for bankruptcy protection in February 2015.
It’s hard to believe this now, but according to The Overworked American, by Boston College professor of sociology Juliet Schor, in the 1950s the shrinking workweek meant universities sprouted departments of leisure studies, to figure out what Americans would soon be doing with their ever-expanding supply of free time. Then, in about 1970, the trend reversed, and the workweek of the average American began to grow longer.
In 1979 the average worker put in 1,687 hours a year, according to the Economic Policy Institute, and by 2007 that number was 1,868. The net difference, 181 hours a year, represents more than a month of extra work every year.
How are we to salvage what little precious time we have with our families and for our own well-being? The Apostle Paul’s exhortation to the Colossian church may provide some insight on how to capture the left-over moments of our day… Colossians 4:5 (NKJV), “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.”
Pastor Rick Jones previously served on the staff of Defiance Area Youth for Christ for 36 years, first as a ministry coordinator and later as Executive Director. Rick is currently a pastor of an area local church.
