Now

What are you doing right now? This minute? The odds are good that you are doing several things at once. Maybe you are doing the laundry while having a phone conversation, cooking dinner, reading this and even thinking about another half dozen things you need to do. Multitasking. We have become a society that is so proud of our ability to do many things at once.

I am constantly amazed at the number of people I see in the grocery store these days who are actually trying to carry on conversations on their cell phones. And they aren't just checking with someone about the groceries they are buying. They are just chatting.

My day job used to be in Information Technology and the ability to multitask is a requirement for any position in this field. If you cannot accomplish many tasks at once you are not eligible to work in this field. Period. It is a fast-paced, high stress, ever changing environment that demands one have the ability to focus on multiple agendas.

A car accident three years ago forced me to stop my hectic pace for six months. At first, I thought I would go crazy. I couldn't imagine how anyone could get through their day without having a million things to do. I had gotten so used to running from dawn till well after dusk I thought I couldn't possibly enjoy my life if all I had planned for the day was physical therapy, a doctor's appointment and taking care of my cat.

I realize now that God was giving me a wake up call. Time to slow down. I was missing out on my own life. It has taken some time, but now I know that what is important to me is not working my life away. I have made it a point to spend more time with my family and friends. I have slowed down. I take more time to talk with God and I am profoundly more thankful for my life than I ever was before.

Not long ago I received an email from a friend that recounted a story I think emphasizes the point I am trying to make. I don't know who wrote it, but here it is:

THE BRICK

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar.
He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something.
As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door!
He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown.
The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?"
The young boy was apologetic. "Please, mister...please, I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do," He pleaded.
"I threw the brick because no one else would stop..."
With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car.
"It's my brother," he said. 'He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up."
Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, "Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me."
Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat.
He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay..
"Thank you and may God bless you," the grateful child told the stranger.
Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar.
The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message "Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!"

God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts.
Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us.
It's our choice to listen or not.
It took a brick (car accident) to slow me down. Don't wait till a brick hits you.