best adjective \’best\
of the most excellent
effective
desirable type or quality
I think we all know what it means to give our best simply because you’ve probably already been doing it! You know, working as hard as you can, pressing ahead even when you feel like giving up and getting lazy, making the necessary sacrifices that keep you on point and on task. You’re likely getting exhausted just thinking about a resolution that has anything to do with giving more than you already are.
Here’s our resolution:
I will seek to devote the best of myself, my time, and my talents to the primary roles the Lord has entrusted to me in this phase of my life.
Yup. I get it. I feel the same way.
But here’s the deal….don’t get so hung up on the “giving the best of myself” part that you don’t get to the other part – the part that changes the playing field of this resolution: getting clarity on your “primary roles”.
That’s the key.
Fight the urge to spread yourself too thin. Hone in on what matters today. Achieving clarity on your primary roles is essential. Being your best at what God wants you to be doing – that’s we need to shoot for.
As you’re able to determine what your current priorities should be, and as you’re obedient in setting other things aside for the time being, don’t fret that you’ll never again have the opportunity to spend time pursuing them. It certainly will not be on the shelf forever. Just for now – freeing you up to be fully engaged in what matters most.
To the glory of God.
Questions to think about:
If you have a tendency to spread yourself too thinly, in what kind of state does this typically tend to leave you at the end of the day or the start of a new week?
Ask a wise, honest friend who knows you well how she thinks you’re managing your current priorities.
As you think about those things you want to do but can never seem to make time for, remember the biblical appeal that says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV). How could this deliberate act of trust and perspective free you to invest yourself more joyfully in today?
When honoring God is your focus, it pares down your purpose and narrows your focus. Carefully reconsider this sentence in light of your own personal circumstances, then record your thoughts:
How does a focus on honoring God…
lighten the burden of the perfectionist?
inspire you to give your best effort?
When faced with an activity like this – one that you find particularly challenging – how are you encouraged by knowing that God will empower your efforts designed to bring Him glory?
Bless you,
Priscilla
