I want to remember the smell of my baby’s breath and the soft contour of her toddler face, because I was there. I want to remember the ramblings of tales, and the twinkle of son’s eyes, because I saw him. I want my pre-teen beauty to have the confidence to tell me of her crisis, that she has nothing to wear, and know I care, because I listened. I want to laugh quiet-loud, while all else is asleep, with my night-owl eldest beauty, knowing those times will come fewer and farther between, because she is soon going to be spreading her wings.
But, I will miss the beauty of these moments if I am not living purposefully — pursuing God and cultivating my most important relationships.
I wake up to a new day — the same, sometimes daunting, 24 hours to manage every day. I purpose not to spend my days in crisis mode — the urgent pushing out the important, but sometimes I get tangled up. The busyness requires my permission. Saying YES to an activity, means saying NO to another. Time spent is always at the cost of something else.
Years from now, when I look back on how I spent my life, I do not want to find myself burdened with the anguish of regret over the time squandered, relationships neglected, and missed God-designed opportunities.
So how do we live intentionally?
Knowing how to say NO to the right things and YES to the right things, is the true essence of living with intentionality, and cannot be done apart from God’s Word. Ephesians 5:15-17 is a guide for our days.
Look carefully then how you walk! Live PURPOSEFULLY and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as WISE, making the very most of your time because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understand and firmly grasp what the WILL of the LORD is.
To Live Purposefully: Pray God will teach us to realize how short our lives are. Then our hearts will become wise. Psalm 90:12
To Live Wise: Pray for wisdom, which God bestows liberally despite our faults, when we ask in faith. James 1:5-6
To Live In God’s Will: Acknowledge God, and listen for His voice in everything. He’s the one who will keep us on track. Proverbs 3:6
Our hours and days should reflect our priorities, and all the different parts of our life align with our core values, in the same direction, and that direction is pointed toward our life’s God given purpose.
If my days are blurred, and swiftly passing, I know I am not truly living, I then take a step back, and I ask myself a question. The answer to the question helps filter my YES, and give me the courage to say NO. The answer helps me hold tenaciously to the most important things, and let go of the what does not really matter. I will ask you the same question. Will you tell us?
What do you regret from yesterday?
Now, let us live today differently. By His grace, we can.
Michele-Lyn is a wife and homeschooling mama to four beautiful gifts. She blogs at A Life Surrendered. There, you will find stories of her walking out her days, in pursuit of God — trials and triumphs. She writes in the hope it will to bring encouragement, especially to weary mamas. She shares the truths she holds tightly to in the fight for the family, and also desires to stir a passion to seek God. She can be found on Facebook and Twitter.
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Great post! I feel that I am constantly having to re-evaluate how I spend my time and put limits on things. You identified a great passage to help guide in that process. Thank you!
Thank you, Mary Beth
I too, have to evaluate and then re-evaluate how I spend my days. Somedays I do better than others, but I’m learning how to let go of the lesser to embrace the greater.
Blessings, friend
I really like how you explain that if your “days are blurring and swiftly passing” then you just might need to slow down and realign your priorities. I get this and am trying my best to stay true to my callings and priorities. It’s a tough balance, but seems to be a bit easier since my kids have gotten older. But then I do sometimes wish for those cluttered toddler days again. Great post, Michele-Lyn and thanks to you, Denise, for hosting it!
Beth,
Thank you so much for your encouraging words and sharing your heart honestly.
I am a slow learner and I still need to anchor myself daily, otherwise I blow off course, and that usually ends in frustration.
I thank God for His grace and for His gentle promptings reminding us which way to go
Blessings to you,
Michele-Lyn
Sometimes I have days like that, that pass in a blur. It is important to slow down and notice and live the moment.
Lisa,
Thank you for sharing here. I am learning from each swiftly passing day the importance of living intentionally. Only by His grace.
Blessings,
Michele-Lyn
Excellent reminder. I have recently started to discover that there are only 24 hours in a day and not 48. I’ve been trying to do to much and as a result, the very ones I love the most (my three children and my hubs) were suffering. Learning to identify my passion and calling has been so helpful – I can say “yes” to the things that align with my ministry (not all things of course!) and no to those that don’t and not feel the guilt. Thank you so much for the affirmation! Blessings to you!
Natalie,
Oh, I totally get it! And you mentioned something that is a whole other topic and struggle at times, and that’s guilt.
That’s where the practice of letting go of the things that don’t really matter in God’s big picture for our life, comes in. Just rest in His grace. That’s what I remind myself daily
Thanks for sharing, blessings…
Michele-Lyn
“Saying YES to an activity, means saying NO to another. Time spent is always at the cost of something else.”
This is such a great reminder. Something I am working on (ever so slowly)!!!
Thanks for a great post!
Amber,
Oh, I am a slow learner. I have to stand on God’s promise that He will never give up on us even if the work of transformation gets messy. That’s grace.
Thanks for your encouraging words
Michele-Lyn
“If my days are blurred, and swiftly passing, I know I am not truly living…”
Oh how I needed this reminder today, Michele-Lyn. Thank you so much!
And Denise, how I love your heart. Thank you for sharing your space!
Nikki,
It’s so great to see you here. Thank you for encouragement. You are a blessing
Denise,
Thank you so much for being such a gracious host. Thank you for the opportunity to share with your readers. It was truly an honor and a privilege. You are a gift to us.
Blessings to you,
Michele-Lyn
Balance is something I struggle with every day. My days have been blurred and swiftly passing of late. I am pressing in. I want to see only Him and know what it is He’s calling me to do. Thank you for sharing your heart here today!
Barbie,
We do need to press in when our days get like this, don’t we? I know. There are so many good opportunities before us, but if we clutter up our days with too many, we can miss out on the best ones, the God given ones. This is where I am right now. By God’s grace we walk and He leads.
Blessings to you, friend.
Thank you for these important reminders. These words are beautiful and powerful. Thank you for sharing here and for encouraging us to thoughtfully order our moments and our days. This is great stuff, girl. Grateful for you.
Elizabeth,
Thank you for your encouraging comments. I am so glad that you stopped in and shared. I am grateful for you
Blessings to you,
Michele-Lyn
This is a total shift of paradigm from the way our society has taught us to evaluate success. I love How God’s word leaves no area of our lives untouched. Thank you for sharing this scripture with us so that we can renew our minds to walk I. Wisdom. Now let me get back to my date with my 5 year old! I am reminded to stare at him while he rushes through a Burger to get to the ice cream
To live in wisdom & in God’s will. I have been praying those exact words as not only do they pertain to my everyday living, but to my parenting as well. I have discovered that the more aligned with God I am the more strength I have to face & concur my day