You know those seasons when you are so busy you hardly feel you have time to even look at your to do list? And you consider what would happen to your family if you actually lost your mind?
We can get so caught up in tasks, that not only do we lose our focus, but we lose our perspective and fruitfulness. Sometimes it helps to pull away from the task mountain in front of you and step back to remember the basics.
Are you busy today? Here are three basic elements to guard and develop:
Attitude: your spirit
Your spirit in how you approach busy days makes all the difference. And, fortunately, your spirit is one thing that—regardless of the mounting stressors around you—you can control.
One of the most obvious examples in Scripture of someone who maintained an excellent spirit in the midst of turmoil and stress is Daniel.
Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him—Daniel 6:3
One word of admonition here: To maintain an excellent spirit, you have to work at it all the time—not just once a week.
As you get out of bed on a busy day, pray, “Lord, help me to rejoice in today—in the fact that it is a day which You have made, in the opportunities You have given me today, and in Your unchanging attributes.
This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.—Psalm 118:24
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.—Philippians 4:4
Everything that you do begins with an attitude. Guard your spirit, and you guard your heart—and your sanity.
Behavior: your actions
Sometimes we give ourselves a pass on godliness when we are busy. We make little excuses for ungodly behaviors, whether they be internal (such as pride, fear, or envy) or external (such as questionable activities or breaches of testimony).
Even in busy seasons—actually, especially in busy seasons—guard your behavior. Be appropriate. Remain accountable to the Lord and to others. And be guided by integrity.
Abstain from all appearance of evil.—1 Thessalonians 5:22
Compassion: your ministry
Perhaps the easiest responsibility to lose in busy times is compassion. We can go through the motions of completing tasks—even ministry-related tasks—without a heart of compassion.
And yet, if there is one thing you can’t afford to surrender to busyness, it is compassion. Guard it carefully. Ask God to renew it daily. And purposefully carve out times to express the compassion of Christ through soulwinning and personal ministry to hurting people.
In all of Jesus’ ministry, He was filled with compassion. He didn’t just perform rote actions of ministry. Over and over through the gospels, we see that Jesus loved people, and He reached out to them in compassion.
But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.—Matthew 9:36
And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.—Matthew 14:14
So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.—Matthew 20:34
And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.—Mark 1:41
I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:—Mark 8:2
And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.—Luke 7:13
Each of these elements—attitude, behavior, and compassion—make a difference.
Focus on these simple A-B-Cs to keep your sanity while making forward progress for the Lord.
