Guest Post by Dana Christensen-Udlock, owner of The Story of You and mother of 5 (including 2 sets of twins!)

Spring has sprung in my neck of the woods, and the tulips are blooming in my front yard. While admiring them from the window, I saw my neighbor outside and decided to run outside and check in with her.

It’s amazing how difficult it is to stay connected with the people in my neighborhood! We live just moments away from each other, but our lives are so different and busy that it’s difficult to find the time to connect. And I must confess that it’s rare for me to just drop everything and run outside to say hello when the opportunity presents itself.

But, I’m also realizing that if I don’t have time in my schedule to develop relationships with my neighbors, I’m missing out on opportunities to be the hands and feet of Christ to those around me. The neighbor I said hello to this morning doesn’t go to church—she has experienced Christian condemnation for choices she made when she was younger. As a result, she believes that all Christians are judgmental. As I reach out to her, I have the opportunity to share a different picture of God’s love for her, one moment on the sidewalk at a time.  I think this morning’s five-minute conversation was a God-moment, even though His name was never mentioned.

And I am ashamed of my selfish thinking that many times stopped me from spending five minutes to be a ray of SONshine in someone else’s life.

How about you? Does your schedule allow you the time to watch for little moments where you can see God at work and join Him in spreading the good news of His great love to others?  What could you change in the way you view your day (and your busy “to-do” list) in order to be more aware of God’s activity around you? Look for opportunities this week, and write in to share what God has done in you and through you as a result! We can make a difference, in our lives and in the lives of others, five minutes at a time!