Here I go again! Do you find yourself caught up in the same swirling current I often find myself? It seems like the “urgent” frequently tries to drown out the “important”, always vying for first place!
And to be honest, I struggle sometimes feeling like my life and the way I use my time can be snatched away, leaving me wondering who’s in charge? Me…or all the clutter that seems to pile up on my plate if I don’t watch over it?
So what’s the solution? I’d love to hear what you do when you feel like your life is out of balance and you find yourself asking, once again, is this the way life is supposed to be? What things demand your attention and throw off your day-to-day life? How do you reign it back in? I think these are good questions that we have to ask ourselves. Examine your own answers, not necessarily listening to someone else’s opinion. Making room for life is a very personal choice; decide what’s best for you.
1) What seems to be missing? 2) What should we be “making room for”? 3) What can be tucked away for a later time? 4) Are you willing to determine what is “life clutter” and can be scraped off your plate into the garbage?
No one except you will make sure you have the time you need to make room for life! So, why don’t you grab a notebook and a pen and consider joining me as you read this. I’m going to begin a list of what I think should be included as I make room for life. I find when I actually jot things down they take a more centered focus, instead of rolling around in my already full brain! As we do this together, let’s pray first… so we can hear what matters to the Lord and what He knows we should keep, what we should tuck away for another season, and lastly, what we should scrape off! I can promise we’ll have a much easier time “Cherishing Ordinary Days” if we are willing to do what it takes to make room for life.
I started pondering on this post days ago as I was praying about what topic to cover. I wrote “MAKING ROOM FOR LIFE” on my computer. I sat there staring at it… I left it there… for a few days. I deleted it.
Oftentimes as I pray for the Lord to give me my next topic, I’ll look at book titles to get the creative side of my brain flowing. I was peeking around my writing room when I saw a pile of books on a bottom shelf, stashed there for future reading. I pulled off the top book and this was the title: “Real Simplicity,” written by The Frazees, with the tag line of ~ Making Room for Life ~. I feel so loved when the Lord leads me this way. Marveling at the intimacy of the Lord, I was startled when the phone rang. It was one of my precious ones…
“Mommy, can I take you to breakfast this morning? Can you meet me there in twenty minutes? This way we may be able to get a booth.”
Everything in me hesitated; I had planned to spend the day writing. I thought of what had just transpired. I knew what the Lord had given me to write, so I felt a sense of freedom. And then, as if He was right there waiting for me to answer her, I knew this was what He had planned for me to do that day, even though I had other ideas. This was all a part of learning how to make room for life ~ making room for the things that matter to others, are a blessing to us, and matter to Him!
So in closing, let me tell you what we did. We ate a delicious breakfast then chatted for hours as we drove to Vermont to pick up an antique Persian rug my daughter found. She saved $100 on the price of the rug! We drove back to Albany and then had a late lunch in a wonderful restaurant! It ended up being a precious day… a memory that will remain in our hearts.
There’s so much I could say about “making room for life”… about cherishing ordinary days… but today I’ll just tell you my own story. It was a wonderful gift that I was able to lay aside the urgent and embrace the important, letting my dear one know how much I love her, how valuable she is to me and to our family, and how much I loved our special day together.
Writing will wait.
Cleaning will wait.
The laundry will wait.
Whatever is vying for first place, pushing the important out of the way, “it” will wait. I’m letting “it” know that I’ve got a list now…and it’s filling up with precious things that matter more; “it’s” not at the top of my list anymore. I’ve made a change. I’m deliberately making room for life! Won’t you join me? I know you won’t be sorry!
On this journey together,
Deb
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