I received a phone call from a dear friend this afternoon who opened our conversation by asking, "How busy are you?" Oh, boy. My mind raced through a list of to-do's as I caught my breath.
"Too busy," I admitted.
"How are you handling it?" she asked. Now, with some people this is an up-front question. Knowing her, it was a trick question. She loves me enough to be honest. Bluffing was out of the question. Fortunately, God and I had already had this discussion today.
"I'm handling it one moment at a time. There's too much to do. So I told the Lord that if He would prompt and direct me, with His help, I'll be obedient."
"Do you have time for me?"
"This is as good a prompting as I'll get," and a pleasant one, too, I said to myself.
By the time we finished our conversation and hung up the phone, God had blessed me abundantly. She shared how God is working in her life, where she's struggling, and as she preached to herself, she spoke to my almost-harried heart.
God knows the demands of each hour and each day. He knows the calling He has on our lives. I can honestly say that the responsibilities I have taken on are God-given. I am practicing the art of saying no to those people and things I would say yes to simply as a courtesy or because of other's expectations. The things on my plate are personal callings from God, but there is no physical, earthly way to accomplish them (need I add: to do them the way I think they should be done?). Somehow, God does.
So, for tonight's young adult barbecue, my kitchen floor may not be spotless, the cobweb may still be in the windowsill, I will no doubt have a pile of copies to make for Good News Club sitting on the dining room table. But if God gives sweetness of fellowship and honoring words from our hearts, then it doesn't have to be done to my specifications, does it? It is the Spirit who burdens, the Father who provides, and the Son who bridges the gap. In the incomplete moment of this day, there is no moss gathering on these heavenly treasures... God keeps moving me along. Praise Him, praise Him!
"Too busy," I admitted.
"How are you handling it?" she asked. Now, with some people this is an up-front question. Knowing her, it was a trick question. She loves me enough to be honest. Bluffing was out of the question. Fortunately, God and I had already had this discussion today.
"I'm handling it one moment at a time. There's too much to do. So I told the Lord that if He would prompt and direct me, with His help, I'll be obedient."
"Do you have time for me?"
"This is as good a prompting as I'll get," and a pleasant one, too, I said to myself.
By the time we finished our conversation and hung up the phone, God had blessed me abundantly. She shared how God is working in her life, where she's struggling, and as she preached to herself, she spoke to my almost-harried heart.
God knows the demands of each hour and each day. He knows the calling He has on our lives. I can honestly say that the responsibilities I have taken on are God-given. I am practicing the art of saying no to those people and things I would say yes to simply as a courtesy or because of other's expectations. The things on my plate are personal callings from God, but there is no physical, earthly way to accomplish them (need I add: to do them the way I think they should be done?). Somehow, God does.
So, for tonight's young adult barbecue, my kitchen floor may not be spotless, the cobweb may still be in the windowsill, I will no doubt have a pile of copies to make for Good News Club sitting on the dining room table. But if God gives sweetness of fellowship and honoring words from our hearts, then it doesn't have to be done to my specifications, does it? It is the Spirit who burdens, the Father who provides, and the Son who bridges the gap. In the incomplete moment of this day, there is no moss gathering on these heavenly treasures... God keeps moving me along. Praise Him, praise Him!
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