I just realized that I have only posted on this blog twice this year. I have definitely put the blog on the back burner (along with many other things) the past couple of months because I have been trying to keep up with life. I started classes this semester and feel like I'm on a roller coaster of emotions. At times I feel overwhelmed and have stress induced canker sores. Other times, I feel confident and think taking 9 credit hours on top of working full time is no big deal. My original goal was to get through grad school as quickly as possible, but I'm realizing I still want to have a life and enjoy it.
This is what I have been doing...pretty much every single day:
- I get to the gym
everymost weekday mornings at 6:00 am. (I'm not really complaining about this. I feel so much better now that I have gotten into a solid routine that makes exercise a priority. Whether I am at work or in class, I sit at a desk all. day. long. and feel so much better with my morning cardio. Also, I can definitely tell that sitting all day was beginning to catch up with me. I definitely miss the college days of literally walking everywhere. I also miss morning runs with the best roommate ever, Biz.)
- I work full time. I'm blessed to say I love my job at UT.
- I have class every weekday night after work (Mon- Thurs). This is my first semester taking classes towards my masters degree in Human Resource Management. I am never taking 9 hours in one semester again. Definitely 3, maybe 6, but not 9. This is why I have no life.
I have a routine and a very structured schedule. I may look like I have it all together, but I don't. On the outside I am in control of my day because I have filled most hours of my day with a schedule or a checklist that needs to be completed. On the inside I am yearning for relationships, for spending time with God, investing in my marriage, and doing things that I do well (and that align with my spiritual gifts) - like writing encouraging notes to friends.
Satan is very active in our world. He desires to separate us from God however he can. He wants to distract us and keep us busy. A friend of mind shared this quote with me and it resonated with me:
"If Satan can't make you bad, he'll make you busy"
I am guilty of being so busy that I am distracted from spending quality time with God. I can also relate (more than I would like to admit) to the passage in Luke 10 about Mary and Martha...
Luke 10:38-42, “As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
Now ladies, whether you are preparing for having company or just preparing for the next day by packing your lunch or just trying to keep up with the house, cleaning like a mad-woman...It is very easy to focus on all the preparations and completely miss out on the special time that God had opened up for us, just the same way Martha missed out with Jesus. We say that God is our first priority, yet many times all of the distractions/preparations pull us away from having some quiet time with him. When our priorities are where they need to be, we will have full access to the abundant life that He intended us to have.
Through all of this "stuff" that fills up my day, I am SO thankful for this reminder. I hope and pray that I can find a better balance in life so I don't miss out on God's best.
