It's impossible to find time for everything. What do you give up when your schedule gets tight?

Maybe you've heard of the phrase, "Too many irons in the fire." This refers to juggling too many projects at one time and inevitably allowing one or more of them to fail. Or maybe you've heard of "burning the candle at both ends." This phrase refers to staying up late and rising early in the morning—resulting in little or no sleep.

Asleep at the wheel

I'm all too familiar with both sayings and have become even more familiar with them over time. It's so easy for us to get wrapped up by the pulls of life and give in to everything that comes our way. But do we really count the cost before we attempt to reach our goals?

A year ago today (as I write this) I was in that situation. I had too many irons in the fire—too much for one person to handle. Attempting to juggle two jobs, scheduling for college, maintaining a relationship and planning to move became a life-threatening experience. Over that particular weekend I'd given up sleep to accomplish everything else. I thought that I was young enough to be okay—a thought that proved to be in vain.

After sleeping only two or three hours over two days, I woke up at 5 the next morning to head off to work. Ten miles from my house I found myself asleep at the wheel, speeding toward the back end of a semitruck. I lost control of the car and T-boned a truck I had been parallel with. It was then that the words of King Solomon popped into my head, "In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves" (Psalm 127:2, New International Version).

There I was squealing down the road under a truck wondering what would become of me. And after coming to a stop I got out wondering why I was alive.

Sleep and vanity

What did the ancient king mean in that Psalm? What does vanity have to do with sleep?

This passage explains that we should not worry anxiously about whether we will have food or drink the next day. Even as God grants sleep to those He loves, He will also grant all these things. If I had focused more closely on the bigger picture instead of vainly exerting myself because of such worries, I wouldn't have had to worry for my life that day.

It is often very hard for us to slow life down—we don't take the time to stop and smell the roses. Solomon also said, "Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these God will bring you into judgment" (Ecclesiastes 11:9).

To reinforce that point, it's good that we take the time to recognize all that we have to be thankful for and to enjoy those things while we can. And don't lose sleep because it is a blessing from God if we accept it and make time for it. VT