Another one of her admirable endeavors was the nationally syndicated newspaper column called “My Day” she wrote for nearly 27 years. The column was published six days a week for 26 of those years, and then three days a week for the final stretch. In the column, Mrs. Roosevelt wrote about who she was meeting, where she was traveling to, what she was reading, plays she was attending, and how she was navigating the pressures of living a public life. 

During World War 2, Mrs. Roosevelt took an unprecedented and highly risky trip to the South Pacific to visit and support U.S. troops who were stationed throughout the region. Her five-week journey was kept entirely under wraps, as she was traveling to and through active warzones. Americans thought she was safe and secluded at home, but little did they know she was on what the Washington Times-Herald called “the most remarkable journey any president’s wife has ever made.” Partially because Mrs. Roosevelt’s trip was so high stakes and secretive, the amount of luggage she was allowed to carry was limited. She was not traveling via a fancy Air-Force-One-type aircraft; she was going from place to place throughout the Pacific on a transport plane. An early passage in the book read:

Adhering to the transport plane’s strict luggage limit was especially challenging when it included toting a cumbersome manual typewriter, which she used to write “My Day,” wiring the typed copy from the Pacific to her editor in New York.

As I read that she brought her typewriter with her, I couldn’t help but feel a smile forming on my face. That woman was on a mission! She wanted to keep writing her column while she traveled, so she lugged a literal TYPEWRITER with her as she made stop after stop in warzone after warzone… Can you even imagine? When I travel, I am a minimalist to the core. Last summer, I took a backpack with me for almost a month of travel. You will not find me traipsing around anywhere with a big, heavy suitcase! Now, if that’s your travel style, then more power to you. No judgment coming from this direction. But even if you are more of a heavy packer, you still might draw the line at packing a typewriter, right? 

I just love that Mrs. Roosevelt made space for what she wanted to make space for. She wanted to continue writing her column without taking days off, so that’s exactly what she did. She carried around her typewriter, taking it into less than luxurious accommodations so she could type her column even as war raged around her.

Isn’t this true still today? Well, we don’t use typewriters anymore, but we still make space and time for the things we want to make space and time for. Although you might tell a colleague you didn’t have time to email her back, let’s be honest… If you really truly wanted to reply to her email, you would have made time to do it. And what about the family member you keep promising you’ll call or visit when you get a chance? If you really truly wanted to touch base with that person, you would do it. I know life is busy and hectic at times! But I also know from personal experience that we make space and time for the things we really truly want to.

How has this idea come into play when it comes to your spiritual growth and your walk with the Lord? Have you ever heard yourself saying one of these lines:

• I just don’t have enough time to read my Bible every day.
• I want to attend church regularly, but my schedule simply won’t allow it. 
• I wish I had more of a prayer life, but my days are just so hectic. There’s not enough time to slow down and pray.

I’ve certainly made similar claims at times, but I’m learning to challenge myself to stop making excuses. Let’s be honest, if I really truly want to mature spiritually by reading the Bible every day, then I will absolutely make time to do just that. If I really truly want to grow my prayer life, then I will take the necessary measures to intentionally develop it. As you think through your own personal history of spiritual growth, can you identify any explanations/justifications you’ve given yourself that are actually flimsy excuses in disguise? 

Let’s decide together that it’s time to grow up. Let’s graduate from making excuses—to making time. The Bible talks about spiritual maturity in terms we can easily understand. 

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. -1 Peter 2:2-3

Do you crave spiritual milk, God’s Word, enough to make space and time for it? What about other spiritual disciplines like prayer, service, fasting, worship, meditation, fellowship and solitude? Do you really truly crave growth in the Lord so strongly that you’re willing to do whatever it takes to pursue these disciplines that will help you grow and mature? I encourage you to sit with this question for a while. Then, look at your schedule (and your bank account?), and see what it might indicate that you’re prioritizing. 

To be perfectly frank, you can make time and space for anything, and I can, too. Granted, the time and space made for studying the Bible will look different for a single mom of four than it does for a retired widow. Remember, if you fall into the trap of comparison, nobody wins. But if you ask the Holy Spirit to show you how you can find time and space for more Bible study or meditation or Christian fellowship or whatever it is you seek, He will provide the wisdom and direction you need.

So my challenge to you is to not fall into the trap of thinking that a busy schedule is a badge of honor. And? Don’t buy into the belief that you don’t have enough time. You do have enough time and space for whatever you really truly want to have time for. Mrs. Roosevelt found a way to carry her typewriter around on her five-week journey through the front lines of World War 2. Where there’s a will (and in this case, the wind of the Holy Spirit), there’s a way!