On one hand, you do you. What works for me in some areas of life might not work for you.
On the other hand, I see so many people struggling in the area of scheduling, organization and productivity. They live in a constant state of worry, stress, lack of peace, fear of disappointing others and a general state of unchecked busyness. It matters a lot. Like, a lot. Why? Because this constant state of distraction will keep you day after day, season after season, locked in a place of unproductive days that don't seem to get you anywhere except even more panicked that time is flying by so quickly.
This Sunday we're going to focus in on our third core value: impacting. I probably don't have to work too hard to convince you of the value of spending your time, energy, finances and other resources on impacting the world with the message of Jesus. The hard work comes when we try and figure out how to be connected to God and others, be trained-up and make an impact when barely have the margin our lives to get a good night's sleep.
Is anyone out there tired of living in this space? I was. The noise in my head that was yelling at me about everything I needed to do or had forgotten about was getting to a critical level. It's nearly impossible to concentrate on what really matters when the busyness in my mind keeps you running, never really giving you the rest you need because you're never sure if anything is actually being accomplished.
It was in that season when I started to recognize that all that noise was drowning out the voice of the Shepherd (whose voice I was supposed to be able to recognize and follow) that I started to ask God for help.
And He did. I "stumbled" across articles and podcasts that weren't about my calendar at all but had principle that I could apply to it. I "just happened" to be in conversations where people shared how they were keeping margin in their lives and the difference that it made. I became a student of my own heart - was I able to say yes or no to the right things? Was I able to ask people to wait and trust that the time God has given me today and this week is enough?
I don't remember who said this but during this time of reshuffling my schedule in super practical ways someone said/wrote this: "God didn't given you too many things to do today." This begs two questions:
What do the items on my calendar represent?
Is my schedule an act of worship to God? (Or something/someone else - work, family, self, hangups?)
As we continue into this new season and keep exploring our core values as a church, these bigger questions about what busies your mind and planner can't be ignored. This is an ongoing journey for me to make my time a space of worship and not a commodity that slips through my fingers.
I'm asking myself today, how can I honour God and impact my world for Christ while accounting for the pressures of life and realities of every day living?
I'm coming back to this place day after day after day:
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Oh yeah, and I've got SO many ideas and suggestions for how to make this work practically in your life. Too many! Let's have coffee and talk about them someday. But for now...
Seeking his kingdom and his righteousness with you,
Pastor Tracy
This Sunday
Devoted
"Making An Impact”
Join us on Sunday at 10am as our Pastor Tracy continues in our series.