Things I Do and Things I Don't Do

If my body did not require sleep, I could fill up 24 hours everyday and still have MORE things that I want to be involved with. However, I do require sleep. And, I am not a superhero. So, what things should I give my time to? And how can I be most effective in those things? I've been thinking about this a lot lately...

One of my very favorite chapters from one of my very favorite books (Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist) is called "Thing I Don't Do."

She writes: "It's not hard to decide what you want your life to be about. What's hard is figuring out what you're willing to give up in order to do the things you really care about." So, Shauna made two lists: THINGS I DO and THINGS I DON'T DO.

So, I made my own lists.

THINGS I DO: [it was tempting to put 500 things on this list]
1. LOVE JESUS [and do whatever it takes to know him more and pursue him wholeheartedly]
2. LOVE/CARE FOR KIDS and MORE SPECIFICALLY FOR ORPHANS [this includes things like traveling to Ethiopia, teaching, advocating for adoption, nannying for a big family with lots of adopted kids, and loving my very own family]
3. PROMOTE/LIVE OUT/PRAY FOR LIFE [this includes praying at the abortion clinic downtown, praying for life in our world, encouraging adoption, and fully enjoying the life that God has given me]
4. LIVE AND GROW IN COMMUNITY [this includes good conversations with the people in my life, spurring each other on towards following Jesus, road trips, going running with friends, laughing until I fall over, and having fun parties at our house.]
5. EMBRACE BEAUTY AND CREATIVITY [I just love having a few hours to let my creativity flow. Its a way of worship. Its a way of resting. And sometimes its just dorky, but I love it.]

THINGS I DON'T DO:
1. waste time [this is so easy to do in so many different ways]
2. live in anxiety and "what if" [its not possible to live in anxiety/worry and trust God's heart at the same time]
3. spend time with people who routinely make me feel like less than what I am, or who spend most of their time talking about what's wrong with everyone else and what's wrong with the world [I stole this one from Shauna]
4. care about money [I can't take it with me to heaven anyway...]
5. and I need to continue thinking of more things to add to this list...

I have learned that trying to do everything is totally based in PRIDE. I don't have to be everything to everyone. I don't have to do everything for everyone. The world is not dependent on me doing everything.

I totally resonate with Shauna on this one: "It's brutal, making the list of Things I Don't Do, especially for someone like me, who refuses most of the time to acknowledge that there is, in fact, a limit to her personal ability to get things done. But, I've discovered that the list sets me free."