Chasing Squirrels

The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. Proverbs 21:5

Summer is supposed to be a time to rest and reflect for teachers.  It’s supposed to be a time to quiet the mind and re-charge the batteries but judging by the pace of the summer I’ve had I don’t think God got that memo!  He has sprung one new adventure after another on me since June and it’s been a fun ride!  As some of these things take shape, I’m sure I will have many new things to write about in blogs to come but for now things are in the “work” stage and I’ll be honest, that isn’t my favorite stage!  As I have tried to hammer out a training manual, a Discipleship teaching series, a few scattered writing tasks and some fun speaking adventures, I’ve learned a lot about myself.

I’ve learned I’m good at motion; not so good at still.  Writing and planning tend to be still type activities so I’ve struggled a bit.  When I make myself sit down at the computer to plan and write I just want to go 100 miles an hour and get it finished.  One day last week I  sat down to work and I was scribbling and typing notes and gathering information lightning fast and wound up with a mess.  I giggled as I remembered when Kevin was old enough to feed himself.  I would put him in the high chair and put small pieces of food on his tray.  He was not such a good  “be still” person either so when I’d pick him up from his toys and put him in the high chair he wanted to get down to business and get back to playing. He would gobble the food so fast with both hands I would have to hold one hand down just so he would slow down, chew and not choke.  Humm, genetics are funny! I wonder if I could get someone to hold me down in my chair until I was finished.

I’ve learned even the most unpleasant tasks can seem delightful when you’re trying to avoid something.  Yesterday I got stumped and frustrated so I got up to hang out a load of wash.  Before I finally headed back to my computer, I had hung the wash, taken out the trash, swept the floor and decided to make a cup of tea to sip while I worked.  I opened the microwave and noticed some splatters so of course I had to wash out the microwave.  When I reached into the drawer to get a tea bag there were more than the allowable limit of bread crumbs so obviously I had to empty the whole drawer and scrub it out before I made tea.  As I was ready to settle back down to the computer the next load of wash was finished so I had to hang that load out and as I put up the last towel I remembered I needed to pick the cucumbers.  I think it was a good hour before I got back to the writing!

I’ve learned even emotionally tough stuff seems to take priority during procrastination.  Shannon asked me to help her do something in her room yesterday and before I knew it two hours had passed as we organized piles to take to college.  We talked about her moving and ordered her text books and sorted closet junk.  None of that was in the plan for the day and honestly I don’t even want to admit she’s leaving in a few weeks but all of the sudden it seemed to be the task of choice!  “What is wrong with me”, I asked myself in frustration!

I’ve learned that distraction is powerful.  The stuff I’ve been asked to work on is completely God inspired stuff so I suppose that’s why satan crept in and sent me off chasing squirrels with a vengeance.  I love the stuff I’ve been invited to help with so I’ve learned that I need to leave my house to work starting tomorrow.  I need an environment without a phone, washing machine, broom, stove or crumb ridden drawer to distract me.  I’ve learned that starting tomorrow I have to show satan who my boss is.  I’ve also learned that this work should be less about my efforts and more about the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  The last thing I’ve learned; distraction sneaks in without you even really realizing it sometimes.  I’ve been amazed at how busyness can separate me from the true task at hand.  In order to meet my deadlines I need to be more diligent, mindful and intentional.  I wonder if God is using this summer to make a very important point to me.  If I could hear his voice speaking to me I bet he would say “eyes on me sister…eyes on me”!  Lord help me stay focused on you and the tasks you put before me and help me ignore the squirrels and the bread crumbs!

A Seed To Plant:  What distractions are creeping into your life and your relationship with the Father?  Call them out and ask God to help you focus on him instead of the busyness we fill our days with.

Blessings on your day!