“What did you do today?”
Whenever I get asked this question I’m reminded of all the things I didn’t do since I woke up that I had set out to accomplish. Some days I’m on a path I want to be on headed toward something I intend. Other days I’m lost in the woods trying to figure out how my day got so far off track. I’ll admit there are times when my best laid plans go off without a hitch, or my schedule runs like a finely tuned machine. But usually I find myself filled with rage sitting in traffic, frantically penciling in unexpected visits, or forcing myself to come to terms with my own laziness at the end of a bag of Cheetos and Netflix binge.
As many of us have already come to find, trying to exert control over our environments rarely yields anything more than a migraine. Structuring everything we can to have order and control has not worked out well for us so far despite how many hours we work or how much we sacrifice. Some people go the other direction and give up on scheduling and planning altogether in favor of living as carefree a life as possible. Unfortunately, neither of these lifestyles produces long-term happiness, joy, and abundant life.
We cannot be people who exist at either end of this spectrum.
For the planner there is the constant stress caused by the chaotic - the X. What we can’t account for that hits us from left field. There will always be more ducks than we can put in rows. Over time we are crushed under the weight of trying to control the worlds we have made for ourselves. It’s unbearable at best and soul killing at worst.
At the other end the person without goals finds quickly that there is no satisfaction without direction. We are made to go forward, to create, to imagine a better world and help built it one piece at a time. When we abandon direction we remove reality from desire to avoid being hurt in the hope that we can forge our own fantasies without being wounded. If there is no bar to reach we can’t be disappointed or discouraged when we don’t hit what we hoped for.
This part of us must die if we are to fully experience life in the way we are meant to. We have to kill the part of ourselves that clings to all that is wretched and unhealthy before we can adopt something new and beautiful.
When we look at the life of Jesus, and in turn the lives of people that were pursuing the heart of God in scripture well, we see a common theme emerge that gives us a path to follow. An invaluable tool in an age where most of us are free to be or do anything we please yet often feel so restless.
We see well-defined, purposeful choices that say yes to what is best for their stories and no to everything else.
Not yes what feels good. Not yes tochoices we think we can manage at that stage of life. Not yes to every opportunity that comes across our path.
How do we apply this to our daily lives, here and now?
- Ask God to help you live a better story. So often we forget to involve God in both the big and small choices. Sure, it’s easy to turn to God when there’s an issue out of our control like cancer or natural disaster, but what about the daily ins and outs of life? This reflection might be as simple as asking the Holy Spirit “What’s next?”, or as complex as working out the deep longings of the soul that have been buried under years of resignation.
- Examine the choices you are making. How often are we honest with ourselves about the choices we currently making? Where do our lives need to see change today? Identify the poor choices activelyrooted in your life and turn them over to God. He offers forgiveness and freedom to everyone that comes to him, so we don’t have live under oppression of the shame and guilt of our addictions and false realities any longer than we choose to. Once we single out unhealthy portions of our lifestyles, we can get rid of them more easily.
- Make a plan. After we know what needs to change we must decide how to tangibly accomplish what our stories need to flourish. It’s ok to not know what the next step is. It could be that you see a broken relationship in your story, or a pattern that you can’t seem to break, but don’t know the best way to engage the situation. The good news is that we aren’t alone in this journey. Ask those around you for advice. A new journal; an afternoon with a friend to dream with; a new ally to keep you accountable; a weekend getaway to the mountains away from all the business; maybe some loud emotional music sprinkled in. Find the tools that work for you to bring about practical transformation.
- Evaluate what happened. Somewhere along the line we’ll fail. Not all the adjustments we’ll make will pan out. That’s O.K. Then what? We look back and how everything changed and how that turned out for us, then we continue the process in earnest. Keep what worked and discard what didn’t. Repeat until death.
This isn’t a catch all formula for improving your life. Your story may have some extra elements you need to add in, or maybe only one of these ideas resonates with you. That’s ok. Not every story is the same.
We are moving.
One step at a time. One day at a time. One change at a time.
So tomorrow we can look back on our day with joy at what we chose.
What will you choose differently when the sun rises again?