Time

It has been a while since I posted, and I could come up with plenty of excuses, but the heart of it is time. It takes time to do so many things, and there are days when I just run out of time - and I bet I am not the only one who does so.

We are two weeks away from the new baby coming, and so time is becoming increasingly shorter. The room is pretty much ready - with the exception of me sorting through some papers that have sat in the office for years - and Sierra is pumped to be a big sister. But there is still a ton to do around the house, at the office, and in my own life.

So how do we do everything that needs to be done in the alloted time that we have? Jennifer once used the phrase, we have to distinguish between the important and the emergent. I think she nailed it.

There are so many things that are important to us, and then there are the emergent things that have to get done, no matter what. Having a place for the baby to sleep is emergent, sorting through papers is important, well sometimes at least.

And then there are the things we just want to do - the things that give us joy and empower us. Unfortunately, these are the things that get pushed to the back burner when everything else is piling up, and they are the things that give us teh energy to do everything else.

So now we have three categories - important, emergent, and joyful things. How do we do it all with the limited time we have?

Time management has been written on and spoken about over and over again, and I don't want to rehash everything that has already been said. Instead, I think what we need to do is look at our lives, talk with God, and say - what is it that gives me life and empowers others? What am I passionate about, and how can I live out that passion and still get done what needs to be done? For when we live out our passion, when we use the gifts that God has given us, other things start to fall into place.

So today, may you live out your passions. May you see the joy of life in everything you do. May you see the face of Christ in all you meet. And may the love of God be the center of your time.