I made a promise last week to share one more lesson on HOPE that I learned as I’ve studied through the book of Esther.
I even wrote the blog.
I spent a considerable amount of time on it.
However, it will sit unpublished for now.
Something else is on my heart…and, the prerogative of a blog-writer is to make last minute decisions, especially if one uses the writing as a processing tool.
Smile.
That means this jumbled mess of words is being written for me…
I’ve been reminded that my life is regularly driven by that task-master, THE TO-DO LIST.
Sadly, even the things I do for enjoyment end up on that list to be checked off at the end of a day.
- My early morning quiet time with Jesus…(oh, ouch!)
- Horseback riding with my husband.
- Lunch, or coffee, with a friend.
- Gestures of service.
- Long walks up the forest-service road.
- More recently, early-morning paddle boarding on our little nearby peaceful, calm lake.
- Entertaining guests in our home.
When THE TO-DO LIST takes over, everything about my life is seen through its lens.
My brain silently cheers me on: “Get ‘er done! Get ‘er done!”
But, that’s OK, right?
After all, Scriptures say, those who don’t work, shouldn’t eat…
There’s value in being busy, especially for the Kingdom’s sake…
In general, I’ve managed busy well.
I’m notorious for spouting off my TO-DO LIST.
More than once, I’ve had a loved one say to me, “I just asked a simple question; I didn’t need your TO-DO LIST.”
That’s indicative, though.
In that moment, I am THE LIST.
When asked how I am, I simply say, “Busy!”
It’s an acceptable answer.
Most of us wear “busy” like a badge of honor, according to author, Brene Brown.
Yet, it’s a wrong answer.
That’s not what’s being asked. “How” is about what’s going on inside me. “Busy” is what’s going on outside me.
Too much busy-without-balance creates anxiety.
Too much busy-without-balance robs me of my joy; and, it causes me to lose perspective.
Too much busy-without-balance can put me on the couch for a couple of days.
It did last weekend. I can’t swear to that being the problem, but there was fairly good indication of it.
I needed to slow down; and, the Lord helped me do so, with some strange outward physical symptoms.
Not long ago, I read a book, that had a little aside note on busyness. I jotted that note down and went back to re-read it last night.
Apparently, in Mandarin, the word for busyness is comprised of two pictographs.
The first is a picture that represents the word for “heart.”
The second phonetic element represents a word that can mean: to lose, disappear, perish, flee, kill, and, by extension, can also mean “to have none, or, there is not…”
By virtue of this fact, when I say I am busy, this is my literal answer:
Or, “I’m losing heart this week…”
Could be I’m saying, “I have no heart today…”
Now, I’m sure when the Chinese write the word, or speak it, they don’t think in those literal terms, just as we don’t when we say, “I’ve been incredibly busy lately.” However, it’s pretty symbolic don’t you think????????
And…not just symbolic. It has the potential to be prophetic.
What’s the answer?
Sabbath.
Sabbath removes our addiction to busyness.
Sabbath creates an inner calm that restores the heart.
Sabbath puts God back on the throne and in charge, because our busyness is simply a way for us to “stay in control.”
My busyness is my way of feeding the idol-of-self within me…that need to manage my life, my way…
I needed the time on the couch this past weekend to remind me I’ve moved away from “Sabbathing” well.
What is Sabbath?
Nothing more than an inner attitude of the heart that surrenders TIME (which I tend to think I own) to the Lord.
It is time to stop doing…
…to cease striving…
…to rest, remember, and create space for the Spirit of the Lord to restore my soul…
And, you know what? I might even refuel myself with more HOPE to dispense to others.
There! This blog really was about HOPE in the end…
