There is a God-appointed time for everything he has planned, but often, we try to make time for everything we deem necessary (and it's usually all within the same 24-hour period).
We need only take a look at our To-Do list, which for many of us would more accurately be called an I-Want-To list.
Making plans and scheduling tasks is biblical.
And so is surrendering to God's plans, which are often (most times?) different from ours.
The analogy of filling a jar with rocks and sand is a great way to approach our schedule. Those Must-Do's are the rocks. These are the things that we write on our calendars in ink. The pebbles are those things that are important but not necessarily essential. There's room for them around the rocks. And lastly, there are those things we'd like to accomplish and those tasks that don't take much time and can fit in the small gaps between the rocks and the pebbles. These things are the sand.
This makes me think of Stephen Covey's perspective. He wisely says we should deal with the important things in life rather than those that we too often view as urgent.
When it comes time to write and tend to writing-related tasks, "the urgent" may call loudly and try to distract us: notifications on our cell phone, the laundry, yesterday's dishes, etc., etc., etc. Many of these things are sand. They will need to be dealt with at some point but not immediately.
Unless writing is our full-time gig or we have an imminent deadline, too often everything else seems to press in and sitting down in front of the computer or with pen and paper falls further and further down our list.
This month, I had hoped to achieve a lot more writing and revising. However, August's important tasks have not left me with as much time or ambition as I'd intended to devote to the three books I'm working on: one fiction, one nonfiction, and a memoir I'm coauthoring.
Instead...
My hubby and I are getting our daughter's things together in order to drive them from Ontario to Saskatchewan in early September.
I also have two editing projects that I'm seeking to complete before we hit the road.
For a number of summers now, I have been taking photos at our church's summer-long day camp. I've only been taking pictures a couple of times each week since the last week in July, but it's definitely a large pebble, if not a full-sized rock.
So, while I don't have the wherewithal to accomplish all I would like to in the next few weeks, I do know that I am in the season God has chosen for me, and if I ask, he will let me know what his priorities are for me each day.
And that includes any writing and writing-related projects that will bring him glory and encourage my readers.
When we ask for wisdom, he will let us know what the rocks, pebbles, and sand are in our individual lives.
I'd love to hear what you're working on these days and how you make time for your writing.
Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in 2027, Lord willing. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)
Thank you, Steph Beth, for sharing your thoughts today. The balance between urgent and important is important to distinguish. The analogy of the rock and the sand is a great way to picture all the tasks one has. I do appreciate these words of yours, "when we ask for wisdom, he will let us know what the rocks, pebbles, and sand are in our individual lives."
ReplyDeleteThank you, Steph Beth. Steven Covey is a writer of wise words - I remember the impact on me when I first read his ideas of the need to recognize the urgent from the important. And I do like these words of yours, "When we ask for wisdom, [God] will let us know what the rocks, pebbles, and sand are in our individual lives."
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