Desperation At Noon
I look at the clock, it is already 11:30a.m. and I have so much left to do today. I rush and rush and yet I still feel like I am behind schedule. I’ve only checked five things off my to-do list and now it is time to stop what I’m doing and make lunches for my kids. I know once I eat lunch, I will hit my afternoon slump and my efficiency goes out the window.
I begin to think of all scenarios. If I continue working, maybe I can get all my chores done before dinner time. If I give into the tiredness I’m feeling, then I’m listening to my body and giving it the rest it needs. But I will still have my to-do list waiting for me. If I get all my chores finished, I would not have had any time to play with my kids. I say to myself, “How important is all this? The list will be full again tomorrow.” The rat race continues not only in my actions but in my thoughts.
As I’m making lunches, I say a quick prayer.
God, I need you. I need help prioritizing what is important today. Please clear my head of the fog of what I think I need and highlight the things that are beneficial in bringing me closer to You. Help me to dwell with You even while I’m checking off chores, eating lunch with my kids, and maybe getting an opportunity to sit and rest for a few minutes. Thank you for being there for me in the middle of my busy day.
Amen
I wanted to pray for energy to get me through the day or for time to creep by so I could get everything done, play with my kids, and maybe even sit and watch a 30-minute show. I knew what I wanted, but that’s not how it works. God could make everything easy on me, but what would I have learned? I would have woken up the next day to do it all over again. Instead, I asked for God to help me prioritize my day and place Him in the center of it. When we surrender our day to God and place our schedules around Him, our mundane tasks become purposeful.
God gives us a rich meaning to our lives that satisfies deeper than anything else can. As good as I feel at the end of the day when I have everything checked off my list, it compares nothing to the completeness I feel when I allow God to be the center of my activities and thoughts.
What I’m truly scared of is falling short. I’m scared to fall short in my chores, spending time with my kids and husband, spending time with God, and progressing in my career. Where do you feel like you fall short? When we are dwelling with God, we never fall short. At the end of the day, we can be pleased with what we accomplished through the power of God.
God knows us in the morning, He knows what happens up to lunch, and He knows how we will feel about our day at the end of it.
If God knows all this, can we trust that He can lead us through our day so that we rest easy that evening? God met Saul on the Damascus Road in the middle of the day. During the height of our days, even though our morning has been filled with thoughts of daily tasks and to-do lists, we can stop midday and make a shift. We can shift our focus to God and come back to smoother terrain. We can be changed midday just as Saul was. He went from denying Jesus and plotting to kill those who believed in Him, to a life of complete dedication to spreading the good news of Jesus to the world. Saul became a different person right in the middle of an ordinary day.
Digging Deeper:
Read Saul’s conversion in Acts 26:1-18.
Think of an example of when you didn’t think you would make it through the day. How did God deliver you through that day?
How can you trust God to lead you through your day?
How do you need God to help you dwell with Him throughout your entire day?