Something for the Week(end)

I don't have a good excuse for not blogging yet this week. But I have been 'mildly rebuked' for not doing so, which serves as encouragement to get on with it. November is swiftly vanishing and we're in that pre-Advent planning frenzy where we look at December and realise the 3 weeks up to the week of Christmas are already packed. Last night we talked in my small group about how we make the time to be still and listen to God. The author of the book we're reading made the point that we live in a whirlwind of appointments and tasks to be completed. We illustrated this point perfectly (and unintentionally) by trying to find a date on which we might be able to have our Christmas party. Through the power of Doodle, we'll find something that works out but it's a bit absurd that we're thinking "nope... nope... sort of works but really isn't ideal." This is time which we want to spend with one another, it'll be fun. Yet from a planning perspective, it's another straw to add to the camel's back.

The whirlwind that my life can take is formed from the three main areas of my work: language school, TWR & support raising. On one hand I hesitate to say they're three different jobs as that makes it sound like I am working an insane amount of hours, which isn't true. Yet  they do provide three different sets of appointments and tasks to juggle. If you remember my last post, I wrote about needing to not let the support raising get squeezed out. When I get stressed or feel a bit overwhelmed, I start to feel like everybody wants a piece of my time, and a sly but pervasive sense of resentment creeps in when I'm asked to help somebody else out. Last week I had a really great Monday but then a bit of a Friday crisis when I looked at all that I 'should' be doing over the weekend and coming weeks ('should' also being a recent blog topic).

I can honestly say that when I'm feeling like this the only thing that restores any order and balance to my life is time with God. I need to stop, sit, pray, read the Bible and be reminded that God is God and I am not. I am just human (not even superhuman). The balancing act is the biggest challenge of my working life at this point in time. Yet my somewhat unusual schedule also has advantages. On my 'office days' I can decide last minute that I'm going to work from home or even that I need to take time off. This flexibility gives me opportunities to rest, pray and gain perspective, which are not so easy to find if you're doing 'the normal job' I sometimes crave. 

This is a reminder that I can be more thankful for the opportunities I have with each new day, even in the very challenge of working out what goes where on the priority list. You have your own set of responsibilities, which may be completely different to mine, but maybe you can identify with this too.