Week Number One Recap

Sorry this took me so long, normally it will be up by Thursday night, I was just waiting until my copy of the book came in so I could pull a couple exact quotes from it that I couldn't write down fast enough in the semi-dark during our time on Tuesday.

Also, I probably need to go back and re think some things this week, as another reason I'm just getting to this is my crazy schedule and working 6 days this week, maybe I need to use some of the information from our study in my own life, ya think?

Anyways, here's my recap on the study this week, feel free to add your commentary in the comments section, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Chapter 1 was titled "The Juggling Act", right off the bat I knew this study was for me!

It started with the analogy of a circus act.  They usually start simple, gradually getting more elaborate until suddenly you're holding your breath with anxiety and fear that you're about to see someone die, or at least lose a body part or something.

This is how many of us (ME) lead our lives most of the time.  The opening scripture was Isaiah 33:16, paraphrased in the Message-

"This is how you raise your standard of living! 

A safe and stable way to live. 

A nourishing, satisfying way to live"

Is your life even close to "safe and stable"?  If it is, I need to take lessons from you!  How about "satisfying"?  I think most of the time many of us are content, but in the passive, I'm not concerned enough to do anything about it sense.  

They asked the question, "If you were a circus performer, which one would you be?"  I know what I'd want to be, but does that really represent me, or just what I'd like to be?

Section 1 talked about how there are some things we'll always have to juggle, and that's expected. We have to eat, pay bills, work, etc... but in Luke 12:22 & 23 it reminds us that even all of that stuff is really in God's hands, and He provides, so we shouldn't add in worrying about any of it to the chaos of handling all of it.  

Section 2 ties right in, urging us to separate our physical needs from our spiritual needs. Paul offers a similar comparison in 1 Timothy 4:8.  We as humans will always have physical needs, but shouldn't we also feed our spiritual needs so that we have the faith to trust in God to provide for our physical ones? Also, what "needs" are really NEEDS?

There was an exercise in Section 3 focusing on both Old Testament wisdom from Solomon, and New Testament relevance and application from Paul, I'm going to list the scriptures for you to read on your own.  Notice how many verses, just in this little exercise focus on the same thing?  We need to build up a foundation of faith, through Bible study so that we can discern and prioritize.

Proverbs 2:7

Proverbs 3:21

Proverbs 8:14

2 Timothy 1:7

2 Timothy 1:13

2 Timothy 4:3

Titus 1:9

Titus 1:13

We're clearly not the only people with chaotic lives who need to take a breath and focus on God!

I liked the analogy that nuns take vows of chastity and poverty to remove all the earthly distractions that would keep them from giving 100% to ministry 100% of the time.  God doesn't want us all to be nuns and never marry and have kids and a home, our marriages and families can still bring glory to Him, but are we nurturing them that way?

What are your distractions? Could some of them be "simplified" out of your life?

Are they things that are good and necessary and still give glory to God?

Section 4 referred to the Parable of the Sower found in Luke 8, I encourage you to read it for yourself and think about what your "rocks" are.

We all want balance, right? Section 5 talked about our motive for finding balance.  Are we trying to prioritize for the things that make us happy, or work hard so we can live comfortably? Or are we trying to prioritize, focus and simplify so we have more time to work within God's will to bring glory to Him and further His kingdom?  What's your motive?

I think if we make the latter our goal, we'll still see the former in our lives. God rewards us for following Him.  If we prioritize our study and prayer time, family and ministry time, the rest of the things won't seem so important or necessary and the things that are necessary will come more easily.

In Section 6 we're reminded that balance means we're feeding both our physical and spiritual needs. Our attitudes towards those things, and how we prioritize them affect ALOT!  Read John 15:4 and 8 (even the whole passage) if you get the chance.

There's a quote from Marilyn Meberg on the side of the page that caught my attention-

"If my mind becomes cluttered by the day's annoyances, it's a given that sooner or later I'm going to lose my self-control.  If I lose my self-control, for sure I'm going to lose my joy. I hate losing my joy. Fortunately I have a choice in how I react."

How's your attitude?

These are just my thoughts from Tuesday's study time. If you were there and want to add in your thoughts, I'd love to hear them. Or if you couldn't make it and still have some thoughts or questions, put them in the comments section as well. 

See you Tuesday!

Stefanie