Okay, I know this picture has nothing to do with this post,
except maybe that she has missed the point entirely, just like we can.
Lest anyone think that because I write a blog about practical living skills I must therefore always get everything done, let me disillusion you. Sorry. But, no. I don't get everything done everyday. Don't tell the neighbors, but last night I went to bed with some dishes still in the sink. I know, shocking, right?
One minister used to say, "I'd rather set my goals high and achieve half of them than set them at nothing and achieve all of them."
Henry David Thoreau said, "In the long run men hit only what they aim at. Therefore, though they should fail immediately, they had better aim at something high."
That is what we are doing when we organize our day. It's about setting goals. Maybe you will reach them all today. Maybe some of them will wait until tomorrow. But it has been my experience that even if we don't accomplish all of our daily goals, having a list will help us get more done than not having a list.
Organizing and having a plan for your day isn't about always getting everything on your list accomplished. You've got to watch about overachieving. If we aren't careful, our focus can become our list instead of the people the Lord gave us to minister to. And if we aren't careful, we can begin to feel like a failure if we don't accomplish our daily plan. The plan becomes our master instead of the Lord. When that happens, our plan has failed utterly.
How can we avoid these pitfalls? First of all, make sure you don't neglect the Lord. Get Him involved in all your planning. His plan is ultimately going to work far better than anything we could come up with anyway.
Secondly, make sure you stay flexible. If your daily plan says you are supposed to be doing laundry right now, but Junior wants to play CandyLand, I have a little secret for you. The laundry will be with you always, but the days of sitting down to play with Junior will not. You will blink twice and he will be asking for the car keys. And then he will be off to college. Cherish these days. So the laundry didn't get done exactly when you wanted. I have a feeling it will eventually get done. And Junior will have some wonderful memories to take with him to college.
In short, let the daily and weekly routines be a helpful tool as you minster to your family, but don't let them become your goal. Keep your focus.
