Hey you! Yeah, you... the one with no time, or what seems like it, and you're stressing out...
Stop.
Breathe.
Pray.
And maybe say no, for once.
It gets so easy to fill the hours of the day with tasks, events, and things...
Young professionals attending every networking event ever held to try and work their way up the corporate ladder. You get invited for coffee or dinner with a coworker, but you're "stick a fork in me" done.
"Thank you so much for the invitation, but I'm so sorry. I can't make it. Can I take a raincheck?"
Your family has been pulled in every direction this week, and you finally have an opportunity to eat an actual meal at your dining table with everyone in attendance for the first time in days. The neighbors call (the ones you've been trying to get together with forever) and ask if you'd like to go to dinner.
"Man! You know, we've not been able to spend much time together this week as a family. I know we've been trying for a while to get together, but we'll need to keep trying."
You're super involved at your church. You love your area of ministry, but feel led to take a step back because you feel like you've overloaded your plate. Your small group leader calls and asks you to fill in Sunday night at group.
"You know, I'm realizing that I've taken on more than I can handle right now. I won't be able to cover for you, I'm sorry."
When I was in college, I heard one of my professors talk about leaving "white space" in your life. Rather than filling the whole page with words, leave some space around the top, bottom, and sides so that the story is easier to read. In other words, be intentional about what you do. Don't just fill your time with stuff thinking that the more you do the more successful you'll be. You'll be surprised at how much time, or "white space", appears in your life after you've had a good comb through of daily habits and actions.
In life, we tend to fill every minute with something for fear of not being productive. It's in this unintentional filling of our day that we get burned out, over-worked, stressed to the max, and sometimes physically unwell. So...
Stop.
Breathe.
Pray.
Be intentional.
And maybe don't do all the things.
How will you be more intentional with your time, eliminate unnecessary things, and create more "white space"?