In the last few days, I’ve been thinking about the quality of various decisions that I make – not just with big decisions but also with what seems to be little decisions. It seems that when I get under some heavy pressure that I can tend to let the quality of my little decisions deteriorate under the guise of letting off steam (staying up later than normal, drinking coffee at 5pm, eating crummy food, playing on the computer rather than working out & more). I totally understand that we all need some outlets to just “be”. However, when I make mediocre quality decisions I shouldn’t expect outrageous quality results.
So I’m challenging myself to make higher quality decisions & to be better disciplined with my time & energies – quality decisions = quality outcomes 
Posts Tagged 'time'
The importance of quality decisions
Published February 13, 2013 family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , saving moses , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: attention, choices, decisions, time, wisdom
Pay Attention!
Published February 17, 2012 fasting , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 2 CommentsTags: attention, consideration, focus, investment, time
We pay attention to lots of different things: the bell on our phone that tells us we have a text message, the street light as we wait for it to turn red, our mate when they need help, our boss when they’re giving us our Performance Review, etc. There are lots of things to which we give our attention & not all of those things have a good return on investment, if you think about “paying” your attention as a means of investment.
So in my opinion, there are some are some attention non-negotiables, like our family, job, school, etc. For our optional attention, I’d suggest that we should be mindful to what we pay attention & make sure that the return on our attention is worth what we’ve paid. To me, paying attention to God isn’t an optional choice – I’ve found that I consistently need God involved throughout my life & I’ve never regretted paying attention to God. His return on investment far exceeds the attention that I pay to Him ,)
hold on a second!
Published January 25, 2012 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , saving moses , spiritual 3 CommentsTags: best, decisions, patience, second choice, time, waiting
I’ve been reading about Joseph in the Bible & this morning I was going through the part where he translates the dreams of the baker & cupbearer. At the end of his dream translation, he asks them to help him to get out of jail since he was wrongly put there. The cupbearer was restored back his royal position & promptly forgot about Joseph. So Joseph got to rot in jail for probably a few more years.
Here’s my point: sometimes when we’re impatient & neglect to wait for God’s timing, sometimes we settle for 2nd best when we should have waited for God’s best. If the cupbearer would have gotten Joseph out of jail, as he had requested, perhaps Joseph wouldn’t have been available to interpret Pharoah’s dreams & ultimately to save the life of his family & the future of the Jewish nation.
Let’s understand that God knows the times, seasons & purposes of our lives better than we do & He is certainly trustworthy with time, since He made it in the first place ,)
rejuvenate
Published December 27, 2011 Christmas , cooking , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: pause, recover, reflect, space, think, time
I find that its really important to have times to rejuvenate & perhaps these few days are for exactly that purpose. Like virtually everyone else, it seems like December is normally packed to the gills with activities, festivities, parties, obligations & general frenzied demands. But after Christmas, there seems to be an accepted pause or exhale. For me, this break in activity is very rejuvenating. It helps me to have some space & time to think, listen, be still, enjoy my family, sleep, read, cook simple things, talk long w best friends and stay warm under a heavy blanket.
I know that soon enough, the pace will again commence & I’ll get back into the regular groove & routines. But for this time to pause, I’m thankful. Furthermore, perhaps when we take time to “sharpen the saw” maybe our work efforts will be more effective & less arduous 
how to constructively deal with pressure
Published December 10, 2011 Christmas , cooking , enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 1 CommentTags: help!, pressure, stress, time
It seems to me that the holiday season increases the pressures on my life, based on many add’l activities & responsibilities (Christmas programs, special meals, house projects, present wrapping, etc). Maybe your life has some similar dynamics & demands. Should you find yourself in seasons that have alot of pressure, here are some ideas that have helped me:
- simplify & prioritize: things that aren’t as important need to drop much lower on the “must do” list
- keep core / central relationships healthy: make the extra effort to communicate clearly, or the stress from these relationships can be very draining
- remember that you are deeply loved by Jesus: you are always on His mind, in His thoughts & you always capture His eye
- minimize the noise & clutter – if something isn’t necessary & soothing consider reducing or eliminating it
- give yourself permission to get a coffee / tea & exhale or take a deep breath
- take some moments each day to celebrate Jesus in your life – more ideas to follow on this point
Feel free to add some more thoughts on how to constructively deal with pressure
variety doesn’t mean empty
Published November 26, 2011 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 1 CommentTags: abundance, creativity, deficiency, diversity, solutions, supply, time, variety, wisdom
My boys woke up fairly early this morning & we’ve been sitting together reading a little bit. They were just discussing between them what we could make for breakfast, given what we’ve had over the last few days (french toast, bacon, pancakes, etc). They’re thinking of making cinnamon toast & I’m pushing for scrambled eggs for a protein boost. Nevertheless, there are many different options for today’s breakfast
The same is true for God’s provisions in our lives. I’m learning that God’s provisions for me come in lots of different ways. Here are some of the varieties of ways that God provides in our lives:
- time (unexpected cancelled activities, something takes less time than expected)
- wisdom (creative ideas, insights, solutions, etc)
- energy (strength in what has been draining)
- quiet & still (these can be very rejuvenating)
- encouragement & direction (even in small amounts & with 1 step at a time)
- God’s presence – for me, there’s nothing more sustaining than when I am with God
So if you’re in a season that seems short on supply, perhaps it might be an interesting exercise to reconsider the various ways that God does supply for us
hearing God speak in a LOUD world
Published November 15, 2011 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 2 CommentsTags: available, busy, distractions, hear, honor, life, listen, loud, pause, quiet time, revere, time
Our lives tend to be really full with activities, relationship, things we have to do, twitter, facebook, concerns, etc. If you’re like me, sometimes I have a hard time hearing God in the midst of the noise of life. Indeed, sometimes His voice seems so small that it is a stark contrast to the loudness of everything else. Here’s something that you might find useful in listening to God:
H – help! Ask God to help you to hear His voice (it’s interesting to note that Jesus called the Holy Spirit our Helper)
E – eliminate distractions. Is there some ”noise” you could eliminate? Switch off some unnecessary noise & perhaps this “off” could be an “on” switch for hearing God better
A – available. Make some time on a consistent basis (I’d suggest daily) to be available to God – for Him to speak with you on whatever topic He choses, or even just to be in His presence, if He choses to be quiet.
R – revere. It is often true that whatever we honor & revere tends to grow in our lives & the reverse is also true. I find that I express my honor & reverence in lots of different ways, but very often by how I spend time. Time can be a very honest reflection of what is important in our lives, especially our discretionary time
Have fun listening & watching for God
Sharpen the Knife
Published October 28, 2011 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: efficient, listen, pause, reflect, time
I don’t think of sharpening my main kitchen knife until I’m using it & in the middle of trying to get a quick meal together. So the other day, I asked my daughter to make the salad for dinner & she used a different knife. When I picked up the knife that she’d used to quickly cut up a tomato, I was pleasantly surprised at how sharp that knife was! This got me to thinking about how often I’m in just straight “go mode”. Get it done quickly & move on to the next thing.
Here’s my thinking now, if I take some time or moments here & there to pause (sharpen the knife), I just might find that I don’t have to work as hard & I just might even be more effective as opposed to just staying in total “go mode”. Just something to think about on a beautiful Fall Friday
what do you need???
Published September 13, 2011 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: help!, inadequate, needs, provision, time, wisdom
I’ve had some interesting experiences of late that deal with the issue of needs & provisions. Here are a few areas where I’ve experienced some needs (see if you can relate to some of these): car problems, time shortages, some people issues at work, money shortages, kid concerns and more. As I’ve thought about these, there are many different ways to address & resolve these things by money, more time, wisdom, work efficiencies & more.
Sometimes I think we get a little too narrow on how we want these needs to be resolved. Sometimes our prayers are about having more money, or more time, or more help. But maybe these provisions are nothing more than the observable results of God’s immense love for us. Maybe the real issue isn’t about resolving our needs but rather trusting in God & His love. If we leave our life in God’s hands, He perfectly matches every need to His perfect provision.
There are times that I’ve prayed for more:
- time & He has made me more efficient
- money & He’s given me a creative idea on how to cut some expenses
- help & He’s decreased some of my work
- friends & He’s worked on me to be a better friend
Jesus said to seek His kingdom 1st & everything else will take care of itself. With God’s help, lets be sure that we’re going after God & resting in His outrageous abilities to provide for our needs
time
Published July 22, 2011 family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: choices, decisions, family, priorities, relationships, school, time, values, work
It’s easier to make money than time – indeed, one could argue that we can’t make time. So how we use the time that we have can be a direct reflection of our values & priorities. We all spend time doing the normal things of life: school / work, family interactions & investments, friendships, working out, reading, etc. Some of the things in our life are mandatory time demands & other things are discretionary time demands.
In relation to the discretionary time demands, I’ve watched many families over the years fill up their time with sports, activities, etc & every so often, they seem a little frazzled. Now please don’t jump to the conclusion that I’m opposed to sports, activities etc. We have our kids in several different things over the course of a given year. But I think we have to be careful to make decisions with our time that reflect our values & priorities. For example, my husband & I don’t see our oldest son being an NFL recruited football player. As such, we have him in flag football over this Summer, but its primarily for the purpose of getting him some exercise & increasing his sports exposure. My point is that its important for each of us to use our time as a reflection of our priorities & not allow it to be frittered away into oblivion.
I want to give my time to the most important priorities in my life & may God help me to make decisions with how I use my time in ways that are pleasing to Him.
Recent Comments