Jen’s Gem: Be laser-focused to achieve your purpose.
The past few months of having my house on the market have been a roller coaster ride. From the excitement of the “For Sale” sign going up in my yard to continuous showings, the word “busy” does not even describe my life lately. Can you say “Calgon, take me away?”
Busyness. Boy, are we addicted to being busy! If we are not doing something 24/7/365, somehow we feel like we’re not productive or doing our best. Sleeping in, reading a book, or simply sitting at the beach or park taking in the view is seen as being lazy. I bet you can picture the eye rolls of your friends and colleagues if you told them you did “nothing” over the Thanksgiving break.
I admit I like being busy. I like my days to be full and productive. When there is white space in my calendar, I struggle with what to do with it. Do I start a new project? Do I go through a closet and declutter in preparation for my upcoming move? Do I catch up on missed episodes of my favorite TV program?
I was given the recommendation to plan out these white spaces – planned downtime. Novel idea for me but given my efficiency tendencies, it does make sense. Instead of being surprised by a black hole of time, why not purposely plan out what to do?
In the days of my baby gift business ownership, I did just that. My calendar had each time slot filled and it was the most productive time of my life. There was time to do, time to plan, and time to rest. For the past few years however, it seems like I’ve been in “do” mode and I believe it is catching up with me.
Our brains are not wired to be “on” 24/7/365. We were not created to be in constant motion. Even God the Father, the Creator of the universe, rested. Since He is our ultimate example for how to live our best life, we should probably take a cue from Him.
We lose our peace when we are in constant performance mode. We blindly go from task to task without considering if those tasks are even worthwhile or if they should be delegated to someone else.
Let’s look at a couple of examples:
When Jesus visited Mary and Martha, Martha was so busy preparing a meal that she missed out on spending time with Jesus. Jesus even called her out on it. “And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.” (Luke 10:41 NKJV)
When the crowds needed something to eat, Jesus delegated the task of searching out the two loaves and five fish and having someone else instruct the people to sit down on the grass. (John 6:1-14 NKJV)
In just these two examples, we see that Jesus is the ultimate time manager. He had to be. He had a limited amount of time to fulfill the purpose He was given by His Father. Three years to preach, teach, and heal tens of thousands of people, be crucified, be resurrected, and finally, and to ascend back to His home in heaven. Wow!
However, with all of that going on, Jesus found time to rest, to pray, and to enjoy His friends. You might be saying, “Well, it was easy for Jesus to do that. He’s God.” This is true, however, while He was on earth, He was a human being – just like you and me.
Why was it so “easy” for Jesus to accomplish so much in a short amount of time? He was laser-focused on His purpose. He was tuned in to the will of God for His life. He surrounded Himself with people who could help Him fulfill His purpose. He took the time to check in with His Father on a regular basis – daily, if not more, on the plan.
I have to wonder if we did the same, how much more we could accomplish? I’m not speaking about to-do list tasks, but rather, fulfilling the God-given purpose for our lives? Instead of racing to Black Friday sales to purchase items that will either end up in a donation pile or landfill, perhaps we could have used that time to pray and meditate on God’s will for us.
Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has a plan and purpose for our lives. He also knows the thoughts He thinks about us and we are assured they are not frantic, worrisome, negative thoughts. They are thoughts of peace, hope, and love.
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
As we near the end of the year – and the end of a decade – I’d like to encourage you to rethink your time. Examine your calendar and see if there is some white space to take a step back, delegate tasks or simply remove them. (It’s ok to say no.) The time spent on this task will be worth it.
In 2020, be laser-focused like Jesus and then watch how your life transforms.