Life is BUSY!  We are all pulled in so many directions and there never seems to be enough time in a day.  Unfortunately, it’s way too easy to let the urgent take over the important and to spend our time doing things that in the grand scheme of life are not really important.  One of my greatest goals in life is to be the best steward of the life the Lord has given me and to daily focus on living my life well.

 

The following three things are something that I have put into place in my own life to help me to stay focused on what truly matters and to make sure that my daily actions are in line with my purpose, beliefs, and priorities.

 

First, examine your priorities.  Who are the people and what are the things that are most important to you?  Are you honoring those priorities by giving them the time they deserve?  Are you actively working to grow and improve those areas of your life?  Today I’d urge you to jot down the 2-3 most important people in your life and then determine one thing that you can do to honor that person, spend quality time with that person, or bless that person.  Sticking a note in your husband’s work bag or your child’s lunch goes a long way to helping them feel loved and cared for during a long day of work/school.  Take the time to listen, really listen, to your family members share about their day.  Call a friend or family member to let them know you are thinking about and praying for them.  Determine your priorities and then take action to honor those priorities.

 

Second, I’d encourage you to think through the time wasters and tasks that don’t honor these important people or important aspects of life.  I’ll be honest and tell you that one of my biggest time wasters is social media.  I hate to admit this but it was not uncommon for me to sit down to check Facebook or Instagram and find myself still scrolling 30 minutes to an hour later.  That’s time that I could have played on the floor with my girls or read a book to my son.  It’s 30 minutes that I can’t regain and that didn’t go to the people who mattered most.  Now, I’m not saying we all need to give up social media.  I LOVE social media!  But I have started to define hours that I will “plug in” to social media, instead of the hours that I will unplug.  In addition to the time wasters that we think of initially, also examine the commitments that you have said yes to, that don’t honor your priorities. Saying no isn’t easy.  But when you realize that saying yes to someone else, means saying no to the things that matter most, it becomes a little bit easier to say no.  What things in your life have you said yes to that are sucking quality time and energy from the people that matter most?     

 

Third, slow down.  Life moves so fast.  Too often we get to the end of the day and look back, realizing that although we were busy, we didn’t accomplish what we needed to or honor the people and areas of our life that we value most.  Incorporating some sacred pauses through the day allows us to slow down, focus on the Lord, and make sure that our daily decisions are matching up with our calling and our priorities.   A few ways that I have done this is to set the alarm on my phone to go off several times through the day as a reminder to pray.  I will often leave my bible out and open on the kitchen counter to glance at as I walk through the house, cook, or wash dishes to keep me focused on God’s truth.  I have scheduled a time to daily review my life plan to make sure that my actions are in line with my purpose and goals and finding a time to slow down half way through the day helps me to reflect on where my time has gone before the day is over.  We have also posted our family mission statement on the refrigerator as a reminder of our family mission and values to keep us grounded in what matters most to us.

 

While examining your priorities, getting rid of the time wasters, and slowing down to examine where our time is going and refocus on what matters most, won’t necessarily make us less busy, it will help us to be productive in the things that matter most and savor the blessings in our lives!

 

I’d love to share my FREE “Intentional Living Assessment Workbook” with you!  It will help you to focus in on what matters most and determine action steps to get you closer to the live you dream of.  CLICK HERE to sign up for my free workbook.