After hearing Peggy’s message last Sunday and her sharing about learning how to rest, I was reminded of the importance of resting in the presence of the Lord.
One of things I’ve noticed about myself is that I tend to get burnt out really easily. As I was praying to God for strength for another day, He began to speak to me about how I use my time and energy. It’s important to rest but it’s just as important to know when you really need it and for me it means taking inventory of your time and energy.
God reminded me that from the time I wake up and to the time I go to bed I have a certain amount of energy. He showed me the importance of taking inventory of where I use up my energy. He showed me two levels where I needed to take inventory of my time and energy.
The first level is in what you do. This can mean your work, school, spending time with friends, family etc. For most of you 9am-5pm seems to be a non-negotiable when it comes to your time. What you do with the time you have after 5pm may be just as important as the time you spend from 9am-5pm.
I need you to know that what I’m talking about is not a campaign to grind more or a push to hustle harder, nor is it one more thing to add to your list of things to do. It’s more about making sure you live a long and prosperous life. To me this means making sure your tank is full so that you can live the life God has given you.
Even Jesus knew the importance of finding rest and taking time to recharge:
Luke 5:16 (NIV)
16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed
Taking inventory of your time and energy allows you to not only see where your energy and time is going but whether you need to fill up again. I can’t tell you how many times being filled with the spirit has saved me from blowing a fuse and acting out of character and I can’t tell you how many times being empty has led to unnecessary blow ups out of a place of lack.
Let me tell you, as someone who burns out quite easily, taking rest and making sure I don’t run on empty are things I’m still learning to do but when I take the time to seek God in prayer or listen to worship music and withdraw from the business of life, I come out refreshed and I’m reminded of how important and valuable rest is for your body, mind and spirit.
The second level is what you think about. This one takes more effort and self-awareness but if you are able to become conscious of your thoughts and recognize their tone, you will have a better chance in changing them. More importantly I think you’ll see the most change when you get to this level based on the intentionality of taking inventory of your thoughts.
I’ve spent a lot of time and energy on negative thoughts that drain me and add no value to my day let alone my life. Learning how to take your thoughts captive will increase your chances of finding rest. Positive thoughts give you more benefit than negative thoughts do, not just in energy but in overall health. This might be common sense to most of you but it doesn’t negate the fact that we still need to make every effort to fight against our negative thoughts.
2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)
5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.