Have you ever felt that you were living life on steroids?  I don’t mean literally taking steroid medication, but that life was moving so fast that you could hardly keep up with time.  I remember being a little girl and feeling like life was just standing still.  At that time, it seems like minutes were hours and days were months and months were years.  It just seemed like I would never grow up and tomorrow would never get here. 

Now that I am older, it seems as though time is moving way too fast.  It seems like I am on a roller coaster at high speed and it doesn’t stop.  Others act like they are experiencing the same.  We are all just so busy now and there isn’t time to do everything we want to accomplish, yet we have all of the modern conveniences that no one has had in the past.  I invested recently in a floor robot because I don’t have time to vacuum and mop.  It has truly been a lifesaver to keep me from being embarrassed if someone decided to drop in! 

Getting back to the time discussion, have you ever stopped to think about how you are spending your time?  Time is such a precious commodity, more precious than money, yet we treat it like it is worthless sometimes.  Time also levels the playing field.  We all have the same amount of time.  We all have 24 hours in a day and 1440 minutes and 86,400 seconds to spend.  How are we each going to spend it? 

There are many things competing for our time.  As we go through life, there are good ways to spend our time, there are better ways to spend our time and then there is the best way we could spend our time.  We would be wise to stop occasionally and do a self-examination to determine how we are spending our seconds, minutes and hours to make sure we are making the most of the precious time that God has given us.  God has given each of us time on this earth and He has a purpose for each one of us.  Stop, evaluate and adjust.  Let’s make sure we are spending our time the best way and that we are tuned into God’s purpose for our lives!

Are you looking for an exciting, fun event for the preschooler in your household?  Well, here it is!  Leeds River Campus of Eden Westside Baptist Church will be hosting a Preschooler Reverse Lock-In on Saturday, Aug. 26 from noon until 5:00 p.m.  Your child can come in his or her pajamas for plenty of games, fun activities and pancakes!  There is no charge to attend.  This is a completely FREE event for three year olds through kindergarten that your child will not want to miss so be sure to put this on your calendar.  Contact Paulette Bowman, Director of Preschool Ministries, at (205) 338-7711, ext. 237 for more information and visit www.EdenWestside.org.

Steve Sink with Edward Jones Investments is the Business Spotlight this month for the Moody Area Chamber of Commerce.  Steve is an eight-year veteran financial advisor who hand-picked Moody to relocate his Edward Jones office and is pleased to serve clients in St. Clair County.  Whether it is preparing for retirement, putting children through college or being prepared for the unexpected, Edward Jones Investments seeks to help families and small business owners achieve their financial goals.  To learn more, please contact Steve or his Branch Office Manager, Shannon McCrary, at (205) 352-3778 or drop by their office in the Moody Professional Building on the Moody Parkway.

The Leeds Area Chamber of Commerce will host their monthly chamber luncheon at 11:45 a.m. today, Aug. 17 at Leeds First United Methodist Church Family Life Center.  Mayor David Miller will be the guest speaker.  Lunch is $12 with RSVP to Sandra McGuire, Executive Director, at (205) 699-5001 or Sandra@LeedsAreaChamber.com.

Leeds Chick-fil-A will be hosting a Pajama Party at 5:00 p.m. this Saturday, Aug. 19.  For more information, please visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/cfaleeds.

Leeds Arts Council will present the return of the Shades Mountain Bair Band at 7:00 p.m. this Saturday, Aug. 19 at Leeds Theatre and Arts Center.  Tickets are $10.  Reservations are not required.  For more information, please call (205) 699-1892.

The Miss Leeds Area Committee requests the honor of your presence for a Send-Off Party this Sunday, Aug. 20 from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church for Jessica Procter, Miss Alabama 2017.  Refreshments will be served and t-shirts, buttons and fans will be sold during this time as well. Come and support Jessica during her special time!  Please plan to attend to celebrate with Jessica the honor of competing for the title of Miss America in the upcoming Miss America pageant.  She will be leaving next week for Atlantic City.  For more information, please contact Sandra McGuire, Executive Director for Leeds Area Chamber of Commerce and Miss Leeds Area Director, at (205) 699-5001 or Sandra@LeedsAreaChamber.com.

Leeds City Council Meeting is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 21 at Leeds Civic Center Meeting Room.

Moody Lions Club will meet at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 21 at White’s Chapel.

Moody Police Department is still taking applications for Citizens Police Academy.  Please contact Sergeant Pete Hicks for more information at (205) 640-0343 or phicks@moodyalabama.gov.

Job Openings:  Zaxby’s Moody, Advanced Disposal, Chick-fil-A, Eddie Bauer with the Shops of Grand River, Plasma Operator and a Welder in the Steel Fabrication Department of Hubbell, and Job Site Foreman – Residential and Experienced Office Professional for Customer Service at Disaster Restoration. 

Thought for the Week:  “Speak with honesty, think with sincerity, act with integrity.” ~Unknown

I truly appreciate each of you who read my column and I really love sharing news so please send your Leeds and Moody news to me at leedsmoodynews@gmail.com.  See you next week!