Power of 5 Minutes a Day

By Joanna K. Harris

Joanna Harris is an author and blogger with a tremendous passion for God.  You can contact Joanna here.  For more on Joanna and her ministry, check out her website here.  There you can also find links to her other blogs.

Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow. -Proverbs 13:11

I know this verse is specifically talking about money, but I think the same principle can apply to our time as well. Time can easily slip away from us, or we can harness time little by little to make it grow in impact and effectiveness.

One way to do that is to recognize the power of what we can do with just 5 minutes every day.

Jimmy Evans (marriage expert) says that 5 minutes a day of practicing empathy toward your spouse can resurrect a dead marriage. I've also heard that 5 minutes a day of praying with your spouse can greatly improve the quality of your marriage. 

You may also have heard that  

* 5 minutes a day of laughter can improve your health. 

* 5 minutes a day of tidying the house can keep the potential chaos under control (just ask my mom who raised 6 kids). 

* 5 minutes a day of reviewing your goals and strategies can keep you on track and more focused, helping you say "yes" to the right things and "no" to the distracting things. 

In my own life I can testify to the power of 5 minutes a day spent in simply delighting in God. It refreshes my focus and transforms my perspective. 

With 5 minutes a day of memorizing Scripture, over the last two years, I've memorized several Psalms and a few short New Testament books.

Andy Stanley explains that it is small deposits of time, over time, that produces significant results.

5 minutes a day of listening to your kids may go farther than one big outing once a month. 

5 minutes of stretches a day is worth more than one long workout now and then.

I think this principle can be powerful in any arena of life.

I know in my own life that if I don't plan for things, they usually don't get done. Thankfully, 5 minutes a day is something even I can plan for in my schedule, and 5 minutes a day is a good place to start for habits that we eventually want to increase in, such as prayer or Bible reading. 

So, some good questions to ask are,

* Can we use this habit of 5 minutes a day to move toward becoming who we want to be? 

* Can we use this habit of 5 minutes a day to work for what matters in eternity? 

* Can we use this habit of 5 minutes a day to practice doing our part?

The options are plentiful. Where is God leading you? How can you use 5 minutes a day as a powerful tool in your life this week?