Little Decisions; Big Impact

Welcome!  I'm so glad you stopped by today.  I've got a devotion running on Proverbs 31 about making Little Decisions.  This is a theme that God has elevated in my life for the past few years.  It hasn't just been about food, although that's an ongoing issue.  It's about all the little details it takes to manage my life so there's some sense of order.  It's also about the little things in relationships.  It's a touch, eye contact, a pause - they all matter to someone who just needs to know I care.

With a husband who works at home, and five teenagers, the details of my life and the many needs threaten to overwhelm me at times.  It's in being consistent with little things that helps me not be drowning in the big things. 

So, as promised, here are my top ten list of little things that make a difference in my life, in random order:

1. Balance my checkbook
2. Clean the kitchen before bed.
3. Look at my children when they talk to me.
4. Read my Bible before I go to sleep.
5. Stop what I’m doing and hug my husband when he comes in the house.
6. Keep my opinions to myself 4 out of 5 times.
7. Put my pajamas in the drawer.
8. Create a menu for the week.
9. Be on time.
10. Call my mom to say hi (not done enough). 

 

I'm not sure this is my TOP ten.  There are so many little things that make a difference in life.  I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.  What are some of the little things that make a difference to you.

 

Grace & Peace,

Glynnis

Solutions for an overwhelmed life

Thanks for stopping by today.  A special welcome to those who are visiting for the first time after reading my Encouragement for Today devotion titled, "There's always something I can do."

Being a woman with a high tolerance for responsibilities, I know what being overwhelmed feels like.  In spite of my best efforts to build margin into my schedule, it seems every couple of months I start to feel the tension rise.  Although there's no dire threat, the deadlines and expectations mount and so does my stress.  It becomes difficult to figure out what to do next, and I'm simply overwhelmed.  

When those days hit, I've developed a few habits that help me cope.  Every situation is different, and so not every response works every time.  Hopefully something will resonate with your situation.

1. Do nothing!
OK - I know this seem contradictory to the main point of my devotion.  But I mean a productive nothing.  Although everything in me screams to do something ... anything ... sometimes the best thing to do is nothing.  I don't mean the nothing that involves watching TV or playing hearts on the computer.  I mean the nothing that involves sitting at my kitchen table with a blank pad of paper.  Often I'll pray first to quiet my spirit, and invite God's direction.  Then I think - productively.  I think about what needs to be done. I bring order to the scattered thoughts, write ideas on paper, or brainstorm solutions.  Thinking is highly underrated, and it's something we all can do.

2.  What has to be done?
When I'm overwhelmed with too much to do, asking myself "What has to be done?" helps bring order to my tasks.  This might mean addressing a project with an imminent deadline or getting ready to go somewhere.  This question helps keep me on time, especially when I'm trying to get ready to leave the house and a hundred small to-dos pop into my head. 

3.  Make a menu for the week.
I believe creating a menu for the week is one of the best time-saving, stress-reducing things I can do.  Especially when I feel overwhelmed.  If I've got a busy week ahead, I plan easy Crock-pot meals, or a dinner that others can prepare.  I post my menu on the fridge so everyone can see it. 

4.  Make a list of everything I have to do.
Avoidance is an ineffective solution to being overwhelmed.  Making a master list of EVERYTHING I need to do removes things from my overloaded brain.  With things captured on paper, I stop stressing that I'm going to forget something.  It gives me a wide-angle view, and better perspective. 

5.  Ask others to pray for me.
In the past month, God has answered prayers in some amazing ways.  Read this post to see three of them.  Asking others to pray for me is difficult.  There's this mixed-up idea that I'm bothering them.  I'm pretty sure that's a lie from the enemy.  God moves on behalf of His children when they pray.  So share your situation honestly with some friends, and ask for their prayers.

In my devotion today, I wrote about how I can become consumed with worry in overwhelming situations.  Those circumstances happen less and less as I practice habits developed after times of bombardment.  The five tips I've shared today have made a significant difference in my life.   I pray they help you as well.

Since I love making lists and it's still Christmas time, I'm giving away a beautiful "clipboard" note pad by Anna Griffin.  The paper is lined with a faint floral background, and it affixed to a beautiful backing. 

Just leave a comment, and a way to contact you.  I'll pick someone at random and announce a winner on Friday.

Grace & Peace,

Glynnis

Menus, Organizing and a Give-away

People often ask me how I do all that I do. 

There are a few answers to this.  First, God wired me this way.  Second, He called me to this life.  Third, I have an amazingly supportive husband.  Fourth, I'm constantly revising my priorities. And finally, I've developed some systems that save me when life gets crazy.  And believe me, with five kids at home, my life can go from calm to crazy in minutes.

One of my favorite stress-busting tools is a weekly menu.  Almost every week, you'll find a piece of note-paper on my refrigerator door with the week's menu.  This menu has been crafted based on sale items at the grocery store and activities during the week. 

A few weeks ago, I started posting my Monday Menu on my other site:  http://www.herorganizedlife.com/. 

I thought it was time I let you know about it, and hopefully increase some traffic to my organizing blog. 

On that topic, I've just signed a contract for my next book to be released in summer or fall 2011 called, "I Used to Be So Organized!"   Between now and then I'll be working on developing a blog filled with helpful ideas on balancing priorities and increasing productivity.  It's truly my passion to be an effective steward of everything God has given me:   my time and resources. 

If you enjoy practical tips, I invite you to join me at HerOrganizedLife. 

What is your greatest organizing need?  

Post your organizing challenge and on Wednesday, I'll pick a winner to receive the book Practicing Hospitality by my friend Pat Ennis and Lisa Tatlock. 

This book is filled with biblical wisdom and practical ways to get organized so that you can reach out to others.

In His Love,

Glynnis

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I'm happy to announce that "SueBe" won this book.  Thank you for your comments, and I hope to address each of them on my blog www.HerOrganizedLife.com.

The Value of an Honest Day's Work

Today is Labor Day, and I've got a few thoughts to share, plus a story about my grandfather. 

Honest work is honorable work as far as I am concerned.   America was founded by men and women who were willing to work hard.  Even though today we celebrate the American worker, I wonder if our country is losing sight of the value of an honest day's work.

For our nation to be strong, and continue to raise creative, productive workers, we must value and reward hard work - not penalize it.  God honors hard work.  Read the book of Proverbs to see wise statements about work.  Here are two:

Proverbs 14:23, "All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."
Proverbs 31: 17, "She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks."


My grandfather exemplified the value of hard work.  I'd like to share something I wrote about him a few years ago for a Labor Day devotion for Proverbs 31.  I hope you enjoy it, and that it inspires you to embrace whatever work God has placed before you.

He was a quiet man; a hard-working Texan who believed that an honest man could always find an honest job. Living in the Pecos Valley of New Mexico, teetering on the western edge of the great drought, compounded by the Depression, my grandfather, Bert Sinclair, always found work.


By some standards, he worked menial jobs. Bert worked on highway construction, in landscaping, as a butcher and always as a farmer. In addition to those day jobs, there was a personal kitchen garden to maintain to feed his family. The drought gave new meaning to “dry as dirt.”

As backbreaking as the work was, Bert pressed on with a positive attitude. At the end of a hard day’s labor, he relaxed at home, surrounded by his five children who vied to wash Daddy’s dusty feet for a penny. And in the country evening stillness, my grandfather picked up his Bible and read the words that guided his daily steps.

Bert’s life of integrity and simple devotion to love and provide for his family, left a godly legacy of the dignity of work. This Labor Day as we honor those whose work makes America strong, it’s good to pause and remind ourselves of God’s view of work, and the value therein.

There’s a tendency to think of work as a negative consequence of Adam and Eve’s sin. In Genesis chapter three, God told Adam that because of his disobedience, he would toil painfully in order to eat. But that’s not the first reference to work.

In the second chapter of Genesis, after God created Adam and Eve, Scripture records, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” (Genesis 2:15 NIV). Work was Adam’s first responsibility. In fact, it would appear to be the first “call” of God on someone’s life.

In our society, it’s easy to devalue certain types of work as beneath us. But the Bible doesn’t differentiate between jobs. In Scripture, all honest work has inherent value. Paul wrote the book of Colossians to the believers in Colossae, who consisted of men and women from all walks of life, including slaves. It was specifically to those slaves that Paul gave this word: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:23-24, NIV)

Not only were those slaves likely responsible for the lowliest of tasks, but they were doing it against their will and with no hope of relief. In this midst of this undesirable situation, Paul reminds them that their work has value because they are working for Jesus. What an amazing paradigm shift!

In whatever work you do today, seek to find greater meaning in it. Work is not a punishment, but an opportunity to serve God with faithful diligence and grateful heart. Even though you may not stay where you are forever, do your best today with dignity.

I’m proud of the heritage of hard, honest work my grandfather left. His quiet dignity resounds in the hearts of his children, grandchildren and their children. Burt Sinclair won’t be found in the annals of Texas or New Mexico history. But his legacy of commitment to God, his work and family I’m sure must be recorded in the book of life. That’s a legacy of dignity worth passing on to my children.

In His Love,
Glynnis

Lack of Discipline or Misplaced Productivity?

An online writer's group posted a thought-provoking question.  The panelist reminded us of the Staple's ads featuring an "Easy Button."  And then asked what makes writing easy.   "What makes the time fly and words fly and fingers fly for you?"

It's a great question.  This past month has been very busy.  She Speaks always adds more to my to-do list. My children were getting ready to go back to school.  And I've been playing catch-up after having those same blessings home all summer.  Writing has fallen to the bottom of my priorities.  It's not been easy at all.

What makes writing easy for me?   Being anywhere but home.  Starbucks.  Borders.  Barnes and Noble.  The library.  You name it.  I could write on a bus, the park, or the curb outside of QT.  Basically, anywhere my work computer isn't.

But I should be able to write at my desk!  I say with a pout. 

It's a beautiful desk, and all my writing resources are within arms reach.  My wonderful dog Kona sits at my feet.  My husband is just upstairs in his office if I need to bounce an idea off someone.  The microwave is ready to reheat my coffee and I can look at my rose bushes outside when I need a refreshment break.

But there are also e-mails sitting in my inbox.  And no, I can't fool myself by shutting down Outlook.  I know they are there - taunting me with needs to be met.  There are projects sitting in my desk-top file holder.  My phone rings.  The dogs need more water.  Life happens all around me and I can't turn it off.  I'm wired to respond. 

So I've castigated myself for my lack of discipline.  Other people can write at their home desks. And so should I.  Right?

But I'm tired of berating myself.  And I'm not even sure it's really a lack of discipline.  What if it's misplaced productivity?

If I'm most creatively productive in a certain environment, then I should play to my strengths. Many artists believe environment is crucial to creativity.  Think of Monet in the French countryside.  Thoreau by Walden's Pond.

Perhaps for me it is identifying that two distinct personalities reside within my person:  1) The administrative leader  2)  The creative writer.  Those two personalities require different fuel and nurture.  They also require different settings at times.

So instead of fighting myself, I'm investing in myself.

If you are my area this week, at a Border's Books, you might find me in the cafe, sipping a mocha and writing.  Come join me and we'll start a group of people who love to write, like Emerson and Thoreau in Boston, or Lewis and Tolkien at Oxford.   Well ... I know that's dreaming high ... but it's fun to think about.

In His Love,

Glynnis