Bad Habit #1 - We live on borrowed time. We know that there are only 24 hours in a day, but we make decisions on how to spend our time as if we are given 30 hours a day
What happens to us when we choose to live like this?
Well, we never allow ourselves the chance to stop and give our selves a break. Our minds need some down time. Some people complain that they can't get their minds to wind down at the end of the day when they are trying to get to sleep. That might be the case if we haven't ever located the off switch and our minds are going in an Olympic sprint all day.
Secondly, we commit to so much that there is no way to get it all done. Then what do we do? We compare ourselves to the gal next to us that seems to do it all with perfectly coiffed hair and pearls. We beat ourselves up because we've failed or we're not as good as the other women who seem to do everything effortlessly.
Third, when we live on borrowed time, we seem to settle. We come to the conclusion that a stressed and busy life is just the way it is. And I want to tell you...that is a lie! Stress is not of God. Chaos is not of God. Living a life that spreads you so thin you're at the breaking point is not the abundant life God has designed for you. Even Jesus took time away, took a break and needed to slow down. Don't buy into the idea that an overworked, over committed lifestyle is nonnegotiable.
Fourth - when we live such a busy life, we can't be mindful of the people we should connect with - those around us who need a kind word or a smile or someone to slow down and notice them. We also can't connect with God because we are so busy, who has time to spend in quiet prayer and Bible reading? And lastly, we can't connect with ourselves. We're go, go, go that we can't stop to really asses how we feel, what our hearts are telling us or what we really want. And we surely can't communicate that if we can't even figure it out for ourselves.
Can I offer you some cures for this bad habit and the symptoms it creates?
First, why are you doing all that you are doing? I find myself agreeing to do things for the wrong reasons. I want to please people, I want to fit in, I want to feel needed. Before God really worked in my life, my biggest reason for staying busy and agreeing to so much was so that I didn't have time to listen to my heart...If I stayed busy just enough, I wouldn't have time to stand still long enough to have God show me the wrong doing, I wouldn't feel the miserable, emptiness that my sin was causing in my heart. Being busy was my defense mechanism. So, before you add yet another scoop of responsibility to your already heaping plate, ask yourself, WHY? What is my reason for wanting to do this?
Secondly, put together a way for you to have clear and defined picture of your time. When I was working in sales, we were trained to use a weekly plan sheet. This is a basic weekly calendar that allows you to map out your week. You take the things that you know you have to do, like go to work, and mark those times out on the calendar. Obviously, if a gal pal asks you to go on a shopping spree on a Weds. afternoon and you're at work, that is something you won't be able to do. But, if you keep marking up your weekly plan sheet, you'll see what other free time you have in the week to do such a fun thing. So, start marking off the nonnegotiable commitments. Then mark off the other things you know you need to do, such as, t-ball games, family dinners, a girls night out, etc. Just mark everything down on the page. Then when you are done, the "white" spots that haven't been filled in are times you have open to do or not to do something with. This is big help when someone asks you to go out one night and you look at your sheet and realize that was the only night you didn't have anything planned.....do I really want to give up that night or not? The picture that the worksheet creates tells it all. You can put this sheet somewhere the whole family can see it and together you will all know what the week's events and plans are. What a great trick to teach your kids, too!
Tomorrow, we'll look at Bad habit #2 -- preparation!
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