Enough. Whatever that means.

At the turn of the year, I examine what's in my heart and my house. My home reflects who I am because we do most of our living here. We have people over. We sleep and eat here. And I move the furniture and chotchees around here.

Are you drowning in obligations? Cluttered by too much stuff? Stuck in place because you have too much life and too little time? I'm using three resources to examine my "ENOUGH" this year.

Here they are, offering those ready to consider what "ENOUGH" means three tools to act on that evaluation, materially and spiritually. Enjoy!

• Enough: Finding More by Living with Less by Will Davis Jr. A pastor takes a look at what it means to have "enough" and "not too much." Very engaging and a fun read. It will make you look around your home and office with fresh eyes. I hope it will also help you to engage the world in a new way.
• The January Cure by Apartment Therapy. A daily decluttering challenge that's fun to do.
• Glittering Vices by Rebecca DeYoung. A look at the grooves habits have worn in our souls and how to retrain the heart for the life God designed us for. Cool. Startling. Confrontational - in a nice and inviting way.

Hope your New Year kicked off with great gusto and anticipation, as though "God with us" invites abundant life.

Share your personal resources or goals in the comments below.

Read more:

*When the LORD brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! . . . Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert. Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest." Psalm 126 1, 4–6 [The farmers wept, parceling out seeds from what their family ate, not knowing if there would be drought that killed the seeds or rain to make it grow. They were literally "taking the food from their children" to plant next year's harvest. Ever feel that way when you invest in the future?]

*The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Proverbs 1:7

*Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

*Peter began to speak: “God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.” Acts 10:34-35

Moravian Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for creating us and loving us equally. Teach us to love one another in the same manner. In your name we pray. Amen.


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What's in your head?

After 6 months of waking with an empty mind and no agenda, my head is full again. This morning, it was full with:

• The calendar is packed this week. Do I have the gifts ready for my friends, the material studied for the discussion, the appetizer ingredients ready to prep for the party? Bzzz.
• Are my workout clothes clean and laid out for the morning session? Bzzz.
• Our daughter comes home today. How will her body respond to Seattle weather? Is the bed made up? What else can we do to make the room comfy? Bzzz.
• A daughter-in-law, our daughter, and I visit the spa tomorrow. Are our Groupons in hand? Bzzz.
• Husband's work party? Do I need to do anything but show up?
• Next Monday's turkey dinner? When to set up tables? How shall I decorate them? Are the serving dishes washed? When to thaw out the 22 lb. turkey? When to make the stuffing? Bzzz.
• Are the gifts wrapped for Sunday's family Christmas? Bzzz.
• Oh yeah, I'm a writer and speaker. Are the presentations close to edited so I can send them off before conference deadlines? Bzzz.
• I babysit our 1 yr old granddaughter Fridays. We have to move the crib from Kirsten's bedroom to another room before K arrives today.
• etc.

There's a lot of buzzing in my brain.

I'm sure your head is as full as mine is, spilling ideas into the day. How can we manage the details that flood us in such seasons of celebration and change?

• Schedule quiet time - at least 15 minutes of reflection and prayer - each morning before the whirlwind begins. This settling of the heart allows us to align ourselves with God no matter what the tugging and pulling of obligations throughout the day.
• Watch and listen to how wise and godly friends and coworkers handle the pressures. Copy what is good and ask for advice if you're getting overwhelmed.
• Take time with your calendar to sort and prioritize. Write detailed agendas for items that require advance preparation. Schedule NO more than 3 evenings out per week, say the experts.
• Cut cut cut! anything and everything that doesn't serve your priorities. Some years require intense focus, while others let us drift through holidays at a measured pace. (Last year's journal, while I was in the thick of writing my dissertation, reports many more no's than yes'ses. That was the only way to stay sane and keep moving forward. Everyone survived and I got the work done.) 
• Give away stuff that doesn't serve you as you clear and declutter. Got old cameras? Clothes that don't fit? Seattlites, the www.bigbuetruck.org (or 800 - 992-2060) will come to pick it up from your porch. Maybe your kids have been eying a favorite teapot or piece of furniture. Do you really need it? Give it away with a smile. (See, you feel lighter already!)
• Enjoy the pleasures of the season. The meaning and blessings of Christmas - God with us! The visitors! The lights! The decor! The ribbons and wrappings! The clean house in which guests feel welcome! They all require effort ... but nothing is free (according to my mother). Since we work so hard, let's relish the results.
• Focus on the good things. Peace on earth, goodwill to those around you. Share God's love in every way that comes to hand. Forgive those who have hurt you as God forgave you when you hurt Him. Hug and kiss your family. 
• End each day with a prayer of gratitude. God is good. He gives us the night and rest. Let's not squander it in worry and sleeplessness. Morning is coming and your head may but full again.

Read more:

*One day Kish's donkeys strayed away, and he told Saul, 'Take a servant with you, and go look for the donkeys.

... Finally, they entered the region of Zuph, and Saul said to his servant, 'Let's go home. By now my father will be more worried about us than about the donkeys!'

But the servant said, 'I've just thought of something! There is a man of God who lives here in this town. He is held in high honor by all the people because everything he says comes true. Let's go find him. Perhaps he can tell us which way to go.' 1 Samuel 9:3, 5–6

*Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God. Psalm 84:3

*But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:8-9 NIV

*So then, a Sabbath rest still remains for the people of God. Hebrews 4:9

Moravian Prayer: O God, when we are weary, you invite us to rest. In our anxiety and busyness, let us take your invitation seriously today. Make us stop. Let us rest in your embrace from our labors and be renewed. Amen.

Reflections on regret

This morning I woke up regretting a decision. I awoke gasping at the lost opportunity (until reality set in.)

I did not attend a course. My name tag sat unused on a desk. Administrators had worked for nothing to set up my registration. I missed a class on spiritual formation, a topic that really interests me. And I didn't get to network with a great group of doctoral students.

Many of my best decisions come from impulsively showing up. And so it might have been with this one: I heard about the class Friday (it started the following Monday). I called to ask if I could attend and got permission, along with links to the syllabus and required reading. Ronda even got my student name ready.

But Monday I just couldn't do it. I'd helped pull together a reunion Saturday and gone to a 5-hour workshop Sunday. I facilitate a study on Tuesday evenings and babysit our granddaughter on Fridays. The class just wasn't calling me.

Until this morning, when I realized what I missed and what I could have learned from the prof and wonderful class members. "I could have squeezed it in," said my regretful self. "You need this information for teaching next summer. The Tuesday class was cancelled. Friday's not here yet."

The logical self replied, "Would I have had Monday and Wednesday for research, time needed to start on existing papers? I would have missed lunch with Julia. I needed to decompress after the weekend. Thursday I play piano at the hospital ... and Friday is coming, with or without Kinsey. And look how much time I would have had to take to catch up on reading."

I'm still bummed about missing the week. But here's how I'm facing my regrets:

1. Admit that I've missed a potential opportunity or messed up.
2. Recognize my limitations. We can't be everywhere and do every good thing. No. We really CAN'T!
3. Focus on what I have not what I don't have. This week's research has been very productive, if not creatively stimulating.
4. Make it right if there's transgression on my part. I put a busy administrator through needless work but I can email my appreciation and explain my absence. If I say something awful and hurt a friend, I can apologize and reconcile. I may miss an appointment but can reschedule.
5. Plan ahead to redo something I've missed. Or just let it go. Maybe this great chance didn't belong to me from the get-go.
6. Revel in God's daily presence in the here-and-now. He promises to use each day and every experience for good. We don't live perfectly. But God forgives us. He weaves life's beauty AND imperfections together for his pleasure and our good. 
7. I learn more about myself through the experience. I find I most regret what I don't do rather than what I jump into. While I dislike scheduled obligations, I revel in the surprises and unexpected joys of art workshops, idea exchanges, and mentoring. Since this life is finite, I need to embrace the ways it comes and goes.

How do you deal with regrets and missed opportunities?

Read more:
*For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:14-21 NIV