Our effectiveness in life is greatly affected by our ability to do 3 things well:
- Prioritize
- Stay Organized
- And Execute
What We’re Facing & Feeling
But in this modern, rapidly-changing, digital, information-and-entertainment-saturated, busy age that we live in, it’s hard to prioritize what’s most important. It’s hard to keep it all organized. And it’s almost impossible to faithfully and consistently execute what we need to get done.
The Symptoms
We often have a problem with keeping organized throughout the week and trying to effectively steward all the different areas of our lives.
And as a result we tend to:
- Lose Our Peace & Rest
- Be Unfocused
- Isolate Ourselves
- Have Decision Paralysis Because of Too Many Choices
- Become Less Effective at What We’re Supposed to Do.
I’m Raising My Flag
It’s in moments like these, where we personally feel overwhelmed by the tension between the all of the things that we have to do, and all the things that we want to do. And at times, we just wanna give up. The white flag of surrender is lifted. Game over. But, strangely, that’s usually when things change for the better. That is, if we surrender to God.
Then He Speaks
In chaotic moments where nothing is getting checked off of my to-do-list , and I’m stressed out over unmet expectations, I’m reminded of God’s word, where He says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28-30)
1st Things 1st
This portion of scripture starts off with Jesus saying, “Come to me, you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” It’s as if He’s saying, “Hey, Buddy! I know that you have a tendency to take things into your own hands, and get too busy, and burn yourself out. Don’t do that. Stop. The first thing I want you to do is come over here. Come to Me. I’ve got a Heavenly-truck-load of peace and rest here waiting for you. But You have to come to Me to get it.”
The Rest Will Fall in Line
2nd, Jesus speaks of learning from Him. And 3rd, taking on the burdens that He has for us to carry.
So His rest doesn’t mean we can shut off our minds, or stop working while everyone else keeps plugging away at their jobs. No. Instead, we gotta learn from Him. We gotta show up for training. And we need to ask Him, “Jesus. What do you want me to do right now? What is the most important thing for me to do first? How should I do it? Because I have no idea.” And guess what? He will tell us through His word!
3 Steps To Finding Balance
So again, if you’re suffering from all of the problems mentioned above, then follow these 3 simple steps:- Come to Him
- Learn From Him
- Do What He Wants You To Do.
It’s that simple!
Coming To Him & Learning Daily
If you’re not already, then I challenge you to start spending time in His word every day. Read the Bible. Pray. Then ask for strength and wisdom to do what you need to do, that day.
In the Bible we see that beyond the foundation of loving God, our first priorities are our wife, and our children.- Providing for them (1 Tim. 5:8), Leading them (1 Tim. 3:4 & Eph. 5:23), Protecting them (Neh. 4:13-14), and Loving them (Eph. 5:28). If we’re doing these things faithfully, then we’ll naturally be able to do the same for others. (1 Tim. 3:5 & Matt. 22:39)
Doing Things In His Order
If we find ourselves too busy and stretched too then, then it means we’ve strayed too far from God. We’re doing things our way. And that’s what triggered the chaos in the first place.
We need to start back at the beginning- with our personal relationship with God. Make sure that’s rock solid. Then take care of our families. And only when we can faithfully manage those things should we start considering taking on more responsibilities in other areas of life. But never at the expense of our primary and foundational duties.
Busyness can blind us to our greatest responsibilities. But if we’re abiding in His word through daily personal devotions (Coming & Learning), and doing what He tells us to do (Carrying the Burdens He Gives), He promises to do the following:
- He Will shine a Light on Our Path- We’ll be Able to Focus on What’s Most Important (John 8:12)
- He Will Be With Us- We Won’t Be Alone (John 8:29 & John 14:23)
- He Will Give Us Truth and Set Us Free- (John 8:31-32)
- He Will Cause Us to Bear Much Fruit in Life- We Won’t Be Unproductive & Ineffective (John 15:4)
- He Will Give Us Peace Amid The Storms of Life (Matt. 7:24-25, John 14:15-16, Phil. 4:6-8 )
In Conclusion
So again, how do we restore the peace & balance to our busy schedules? It all starts by coming to Him. By Learning From Him. And By taking on His burdens and priorities.
And though you still may find yourself dead-tired at the end of each day, there is an indescribable peace and joy you’ll have knowing that you’ve done what’s best. You know what God values and have tried to make those your top priorities. You’ve been a faithful steward of the things your Master has laid in your hands.
He’s pleased with the work you’ve done. He’ll bid you, well done good and faithful servant. Now Rest.