This blog post is going to be short…
Really short. At least for me.
I’m blaming it on the New Year resolutions I made this morning, and the fact I forgot the blog post I needed to write this afternoon.
These past few months have been busy. Really crazy busy. But they’ve also been good. Really crazy good.
I’ve accomplished more in 2016 than I ever expected. Big things, like starting a Facebook community (The Living Room), doing a three-month campaign for the Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World DVD Study, hosting two webinars, and writing an e-course.
None of these things were even on my radar last January. It’s been an amazing year, but now that everything’s done, I’m struggling to slow down.
Thus, this morning’s New Year resolutions. Or perhaps, I should call them: New Year boundaries.
Focusing on “Don’ts” Rather Than “Dos”
I love January 1st. It’s always a reset button for me. A chance to change things up and start new, better patterns. But this morning, I realized that I’d pretty much carried the craziness of 2016 into 2017.
I’m on the computer as soon as I get up, then work the entire day. I call out hello to Josh when he comes home from school, but remain focused on my computer as he describes his 8th-grade science project.
I’ve been working through dinner and into the evening. Struggling to sleep because of a racing mind. And none of it necessary. Not really.
Though that kind of focus was needed last month, even last week…it isn’t needed now.
I still have important things to do, but nothing is urgent. I don’t have any deadlines to meet. Most of my emails and Facebook messages can wait.
This morning, I had to face the fact (once again!) that I am addicted. Addicted to productivity. Fueled by the vortex of social media and the lie that I must be available 24/7.
My “Don’t” Resolutions for 2017
As I considered 2017 during my devotions, I felt the Lord leading me away from making “Do” resolutions and creating some “Don’ts” instead:
- Don’t work after 4:30 pm – (that’s when Josh gets home)
- Don’t work on Sundays – (unplug electronically and learn how to relax)
- Don’t talk negatively about myself – (a big breakthrough this past year – Thank You, Lord!)
- Don’t complain – (another huge, life-changing breakthrough I’m still working on)
That’s it. These are my “Don’t” Resolutions for 2017.
While the last two feel more difficult than the first, for some strange reason, they seem more doable than all the “must-do” goals I’ve set for myself in years past. Perhaps it’s because they flow out of a work God has been doing in my heart for quite awhile. I didn’t come up with them on my own. They’ve been birthed by the Holy Spirit.
And I have to tell you, these boundaries feel like a gift.
As though I’ve been offered a “Get Out of Jail Free” card. Cage door open, hamster-wheel abandoned. I’m free to have goals, but not at the expense of the life I have or the gifts I’ve been given.
Like Josh. And being fully present when he get home today.
Which explains the shortness of this post. It’s 4:30 and Josh is home.
So, see you later alligator. I’m going to shut off my computer and find out if his goldfish is still alive.
I’d love to hear from you…What boundaries and “Don’t” resolutions do you sense God leading you to set up for 2017?