Truth and Lies

I was able to do a lot of reading in my current book but will post the one Lie that stood out the most to me today.

Lie: I don't have time to do what I'm supposed to do.
Truth: There is time in every day to do every thing that God wants me to do. (Psalm 90:10-12; Luke 10:38-42; John 17:4; Acts 20:24; Ephesians 2:10)

Thoughts from the book:
My frustrations of feeling incapable of managing my many responsibilities as a wife and mom are fueled by a number of lies the Enemy has planted in my thinking. Lies such as the one above. Seventy percent of women say they have found themselves believing this lie. Someone will ask, "How are you doing?" and most of us respond with "I'm so busy", "We've got so much going on in our family", "I just can't keep up with everything I've got to do", or "I'm exhausted". Many women are living breathless, frazzled, discouraged lives.

The fact is we have no more or less time than any other human being who has ever lived. No one, regardless of his position or responsibilities, has ever had more than 24 hours in a day, 168 hours in a week, 52 weeks in a year. The Lord Jesus Himself was given only a few short years on earth to accomplish the entire plan of redemption.
Talk about a long "to do" list!! Yet, at the end of His life, Jesus was able to lift His eyes to His Father and say, "I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do". Jesus didn't finish every thing His disciples wanted Him to do. (Some of them were hoping He would overthrow the Roman government). He didn't finish everything the multitudes wanted Him to do. (There were still people who were sick and lonely and dying.) But He did finish the work that GOD gave Him to do.

There is virtually never time in a twenty-four-hour day for me to do everything that is on everyone else's "to do" list for me. There is seldom time to do everything that is on my own "to do" list. I cannot meet with every person who wants to meet, call every person who wants to talk, tackle every project that people think I would be good at, read all the books I'd like to read, spend the kind of time I'd like to spend with my friends, and keep every room in my house presentable for guests who drop in. It's just not physically possible. What a relief to realize i don't have to do all those things!!!

The truth is that all I have to do is the work God assigns to me. What a freedom it has been for me to accept that there is time for me to do everything that is on God's "to do" list for my day, for my week, and for my life!!!

The frustration comes when I attempt to take on responsibilities that are not on His agenda for me. When I establish my own agenda or let others determine the priorities for my life, rather than taking time to discern what it is that God wants for me to do, I end up buried under piles of half-finished, poorly done, or never-attempted projects and tasks. I live with guilt, frustration, and haste, rather than enjoying the peaceful, well-ordered life that He intends.

It is important to keep in mind that God's "to do" list for my life is not the same as His list for anyone else's life. Jesus said, "I have finished the work which thou gavest ME to do", not "the work which you gave Peter or John or my mother to do." What God has called me to do as the mother of three (almost four) young children, will not be the same as what He has for a single, young woman or empty nester. Further, there are different seasons of our lives, and God's assignments for me in my forties will not be exactly the same as what He had for me as a teenager or what He will have in mind for me as an elderly woman.

By the way there is another, related lie that women in our generation have bought into. It is the lie that "I can do it all" (my personal problem). I should be an ideal wife and mother, keep my house clean and organized, prepare healthy meals for my family, be active in my kids' school, and my church and community, stay physically fit, and keep up on current events. The truth is, that NO woman can wear all those hats effectively. Sooner or later, something (or someone) is going to suffer.

Freedom, joy, and fruitfulness come from seeking to determine God's priorities for each season of life, and then setting out to fulfill those priorities, in the power of His Spirit, realizing that He has provided the necessary time and ability to do everything that He has call us to do.

Let God set you free from the bondage of busyness to allow you to truly be His servant.