You don’t!
I love this quote from Jared Wilson,
“We all know we could use more Bible, but we often forget we could use less of everything else.”
Isn’t it true that making time for what matters is often simply a matter of what we choose not to do. So, here are a few of the things I purposefully don’t do. NOTE: None of these things are bad, they might be the very things you’re trying to make more time for! That’s great! But for me, these are the things I limit, in order to make time for writing and playing.
- I don’t spend much time on Facebook. (A couple minutes at the most, every few days.)
- I don’t surf the web.
- I don’t watch TV.
- I don’t cook elaborate meals.
- I don’t have a spotless house. (love that muddy footprints pic above. That’s my house!)
- I hardly ever shop. (I do a monthly Winco trip/Trader Joe’s trip and use Amazon Prime (free shipping) for gifts, books, etc. Other than that we just don’t shop much.)
- I don’t read lots of blogs. (I know, awful! I totally don’t blame you if you don’t have time to read mine. I consistently read a few, and periodically check others of people I love.)
The secret to doing it all is just NOT doing it all, right?
Living purposefully. Choose wisely. Laying out our days before the Father and asking Him what He would want for our minutes, our moments. We’ll only learn how to “do” when we learn how to “don’t.”
Now, am I 100% satisfied with my daily routine? Of course not! Always in progress. There’s another list of things I DON’T do but this isn’t on purpose, it’s just the things that inevitably slip to the wayside. I really would love to make more time for these things … perhaps you can help by sharing YOUR ideas? I don’t …
- Exercise. That is, during the winter. I love running when the weather is nice. But how to schedule in winter-time exercise? It’s just not working right now. Would love to fit this in.
- Thoughtful gift-buying. I do love buying people gifts but often don’t take the time to really invest in something special. I’d also love to hand-make gifts … Would love to take more time for this.
- Service-volunteering. My “ministry” is heavy on teaching, leading, mothering, etc. but lower on the down-and-dirty service type things. Again, this is a season, but would love to make more time for serving in those ways.
- Decorating. I kinda gave up on house-decorating. In some ways it’s freeing, and I actually love our simple lifestyle, but in some ways it’d be fun to spend more time sprucing things up. It’s just not the season. Someday.
So… What are the things that you purposefully DON’T do and the things perhaps you don’t but really wish you did … Thoughts?
*For the record, no I don’t have a housekeeper or anything like that. BUT, if I became extra busy with a book or speaking engagements (or if I worked full-time like many of you!) this would be the first thing I’d do. Paying a hardworking, honest housekeeper can be an excellent use of finances, if you have the ability, but that’s another topic. For now, I don’t have one.
And by all means I don’t have it all figured out! Would you share with me your own “do it all” and “don’t do it all” tips and thoughts? I would love to hear!
{Thank you for sharing, reading, and giving me moments of your precious time! I take your time seriously and pray not to waste it! By grace, Kari}
PS, Keepin’ it real: Last night before my mentor meeting I felt totally overwhelmed, like I hadn’t had enough time to prepare for the girls, we also had community group in our home while I was gone, and I felt bad for leaving them all because I had two commitments at the same time, I tucked my children into bed at 9:30PM (!), and this morning I woke up to dirty dishes in the icy cold water in the sink. Ha — see when we juggle many balls we inevitably drop them all on the floor and it’s ok! 🙂