Six o’clock in the morning the alarm goes off, rather I respond or not. Finally, I drag myself out of bed just in time to get ready for work and rush out the door.

Sorry Lord, You know how much I desire a quiet time with you early in the morning, when I can read the Bible, praise You with some songs of worship, and then pray ~ spending time in Your Presence. Well, I’m glad You know my heart. You know I have good intentions…and I can spend the minutes on the way to work praying, slip a few verses in on my break, and listen to praise music on the radio.

But today I have such a load at work. I find myself snapping at a coworker, who, while he can be annoying at times, certainly didn’t deserve what I dealt out. And I did it in front of three other coworkers. Fortunately, two of them were Christians. But what did I do to my witness? It’s just that I have this deadline, Lord.

"Briefly are you here."

At lunchtime all my plans go awry. What I thought was going to be a nice, quiet time of sharing with friends becomes a fiasco, with people arriving late, others having to leave early, and nobody having a quiet spirit. I would have been better off not even going. And these are my friends, whom I love!

"Briefly are you here."

Back at work, I remember my friend who asked several weeks ago for some Bible verses to help her really understand God’s plan of salvation. Well, sure! Gladly I had raced home and grabbed a list of verses ~ a version of the "Roman Road" she could follow on her own. I hurried to get her the list, promising we would talk about it soon. That was several weeks ago.

"Briefly are you here."

There is only so much time, in between lessons .... dinners .... concerts .... recitals .... revivals .... reunions .... errands .... work .... sleep .... laundry .... appointments: doctor, dentist, orthodontist, chiropractor .... practices .... washing the dog, making necessary telephone calls .... Bible Study .... Prayer Meeting .... computer time .... work .... all forms of ministry outreach .... job obligations .... cars breaking down ..... TV .... grass to mow .... rooms to paint .... vegetables to can .... beds to make .... dishes to wash ..... presents to buy .... AND ON .... And On .... and on ..... (And that’s assuming everything goes as planned, on schedule, and without any arguments!)

"Briefly are you here."

All these things are important, and many times even essential, but in the light of eternity, how many really matter? Our time on earth ~ in our jobs, our homes, at our churches, with our friends, our children, our parents ~ that time varies so. For me it might mean just a few more days, for you, maybe 60 or 70 more years....for an unsaved friend, just a matter of minutes. And for all of us, it could be over in the twinkling of an Eye.

And He speaks to me, "Briefly are you here. You may only have one chance to invite someone to join you. Will you invite them to church, or will you invite them to Me?"

"Briefly are you here. You may soon stand before Me. In all your daily activities, what will you have said, or done, here on this earth to invite someone to follow Me? What did you say, or do, that might discourage them from reaching out to you ~ to ask about Me? Under the pressures of bumper-to-bumper driving, long checkout lines, and daily planners that are more full than can be expected of any of My children, did you neglect My mission for you? I have placed you at this place, in this time, and for a purpose ~ you are not there by accident. But briefly are you here. Use your time wisely."

"People need the Lord, people need the Lord. At the end of broken dreams, He’s the open door. People need the Lord, people need the Lord. When will we realize, that we must give our lives? For people need the Lord."