our blog
Feb
Arranging Your Life
Whether we realize it or not, many of us spend our lives as orchestra conductors. We try our hardest to make all these random pieces of life come together to make beautiful, balanced music. Yet, before we know it, the percussion misses its queue by coming in to soon, and we quickly realize they can’t keep a beat. Their rhythm is off, and it causes all the other instruments to speed up: dance recital for your daughter, big proposal for the new client, picking your son up from football practice, quality time with your wife, bills that need to be paid, chores around the house, etc.
Rather than living life intentionally, most people end up responding to whatever comes their way just hoping to survive. Our lives are filled with what amounts to be distractions simply because everything else is allowed priority in our lives. We raise our kids, run our businesses and go through our lives holding our breath, crossing our fingers and hoping that somehow in the busyness of it all we will grow into reflecting Christ’s heart. This simply will not happen by chance.
It has been said that your life is perfectly designed to produce the results you are getting. Like a well-oiled machine it achieves the characteristics and qualities you value. The way you orchestrate your life not only reflects what is important to you, but also shapes you into the person you are becoming. It makes sense that without any modifications to the status quo that the results at the end of the year will remain the same.
The question you must ask yourself is whether or not you are satisfied with the results that you are currently achieving? If the answer is no, then it might be time to do some life rearranging. The natural, normal pace of life won’t push you to spiritual formation. You will have to be intentional about creating margins for God to transform you through the lens of your one word.
The author of Psalm 119:5 knew that our natural direction was not towards God, which caused him to pray, “Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees!” This is a prayer yearning for God to help influence the direction of his life by being intentional with the days he was given. Today is the day the Lord has given to you. What are you going to do with what you have been given – pursuing wisdom and arranging your life for growth or letting life direct your steps towards busyness? The choice is yours.
During the month of February, the My One Word blog will be devoted to this idea of arranging your life to grow. In order for life change to take root, it requires you to be intentional about your posture and the way you structure your days. The first step in this process is understanding where your priorities currently lay.
Questions for Reflection
- Who appears to be winning the battle: the natural pace of life or your determination to arrange your life for God to move?
- Over the upcoming week, write out in detail how you spent each day in a planner (sleep, school/work, family, hobbies, television, volunteering, etc.). After coming to some conclusions about what you devote your time and energy towards, spend some time journaling your reflections on the following questions: (1) What currently composes and consumes your schedule, world and life? Is your One Word getting pushed to the side even though you say it is a priority? (2) In order to make your One Word form into your character, what will a typical day need to look like?
Are you looking for a way to keep your word in front of you all year long? Register for a My One Word account! One of the key features of a MOW account is an online Word Journal that allows you to capture your thoughts to reflective questions like you see above. You can go back at any time to read your completed journals to see how God has been moving in your life through your word in 2010. If you already have an account, the questions from this blog have been posted to your Word Journal — log in to your account to start your Word Journal today!