Is There Truly Never Enough?

There’s not enough time in the day, I mutter to myself. Rushing to get lunches made, shoes on and out the door for school. My calendar and schedule are full. My to-do list overflows at the brim. I place it all on me… I must get it all done. But at the end of the day, my soul reverberates what my lips muttered that morning. Not enough. Not enough time.

And we go through our days like this, don’t we? Not enough time to do the things we want to do. Not enough time to spend with each other. Not enough time to take care of the things put into our care. Not enough time for, well… living.

It’s not just time that seems to be scarce these days. Money is tight- at every turn. Resources seem to run low, and the timing of it is worse. Our energy seems to wane, exhausted we run towards the quickest fix- caffeine for some, a power bar for others. We can’t seem to create for ourselves what we need most, time, money, resources, energy, relational capital.

This scarcity some days wears on me like an achy muscle. Always there and getting worse by the hour.

How do we live when there’s not enough?

How will the quality of life be rendered when with each passing day, there seems to be less of what I need?

I turn towards the news of the day, and find that all around me, scarcity seems to rare its ugly head. Not enough protection in our schools for students, not enough good teachers to go around. Not enough patience on either side of legistration. Not enough time to listen, so we push our agendas on each other. Not enough understanding and willingness to see another’s perspective.   

Not enough. Not enough. Never enough. It’s the anthem of our culture, the theme song of Target, Amazon, and the local grocery store.

And yet…

The God of Abundance

When we turn to scripture we see a different story. The tune is different, the lyrics to the God song strung throughout this amazing story is that God is not a God of scarcity, holding back from us goodness, provision, and resources.

No! He’s the God of abundance, of overflow, of making something out of nothing, of praising the widow for the heart in her little offering.

We have a God who brought the throws of creation into being with the rise and fall of his own voice. We have a God who thought up great oceans and mountains, and then called them forth. He is the one who over and over again in scripture takes what people have, and makes more- the four thousand, the five thousand, the widow, the wedding party, the faith of the father and the mother, and even the waves in all their power.

And so, why? Why do we hesitate to believe in the power of abundance not in our days or our wallets, or our calendars, but in God Himself?

The Reality of Abundance

The reality in each of our lives is that of abundance.

Not because we have so much, but we have a God who can make much of our little.  Not because the time and understanding and resources are overflowing but because in the hands of God, our lives ARE taken care of.

Yet, the reality is God knows what we need- be it healing, a listening ear, time to be faithful to what He’s called us to, money to take care of the thing put into our care, or energy to put towards them. Friend, not only does he know what you need, but He also is constantly striving to provide for those needs.

In the midst of this truth, though, this truth of abundance, we get tripped up, don’t we? We see the lack of resources, the lack of time, the lack of listening ears and we decide we need to take matters into our own hands. We need to push and to strive, conjure and coerce, and we end up exhausted, soul tired, and at the end of ourselves.

Each time we end up this way, know this: Our God is waiting for us to turn towards Him in our sense of emptiness, our defeat, our lack, and allow Him to remind us of being the God of abundance.

Turn Towards His Abundance

Not only can He create more time for us, He is the Creator of the beginning and the end of time. Not only can He provide for us, but all we have is His to begin with. Not only is God the one through whom our whole life is held, but all of life around us is held in His grip too.

Scarcity is the language of the culture- our spinning out of control, addicted to busy culture. Scarcity screams at us at every corner. But scarcity doesn’t have the last word. Scarcity is not the end of the conversation.

Adbundance, overflow, more than enough. That’s the language of our God.

Your reality is not stuck in the reality of culture. No, your reality is held in the hands of a loving, more than capable, Almighty Savior, who is not only aware of the slipping through the cracks moments of your life. And who then reaches low to catch the things that slip- holding them in grace, providing in his mercy, and treating our lives with the reality of abundance.

So friends, don’t let scarcity have the last word.

Turn towards God whose truth is abundance.

Overflow, enough, and grace is available. Today, now, in this moment and the next.

By his word, he can bring just what you need this week. And gladly will! 

If you're longing to find meaning in the midst of the mundane in your own life, I have a gift written just for you. My e- book called Jesus and Spit: Seeing the Miracle in the Mundane is yours FREE when you sign up here. Join me on this journey to discover the miracles God has in your ordinary life! 

The Four Small Tweaks to Make A BIG Impact

Why Doesn't Change Stick? 

When we desire to live intentionally, often we start out with grand plans. This time of year, many people embark on goal setting missions- evaluating and seeking to make changes in their lives, families, work, and finances. Reflection and evaluation are indeed worthy ways to spend our time.

The trouble is that most people seek to change a lot of things all at once, and end up frustrated after a short period of time because their grand plans aren’t coming to fruition. It’s not that their labor is in vein, it may just be that the changes they want to make, grouped together, are too lofty to attain. Frustrated and discouraged many give up too early to see any progress, progress which can be a great motivator to keep going with the change.

In fact, most people join a gym in January, only to go a handful of times and never keep up with the habit. Why is that? Why are big goals so hard to attain? I believe it’s due to two factors. 

First, we have the wrong motivation.

When you don’t know why you are doing something it’s hard to stick with it. And when your ‘why’ for working towards the thing you’re aiming towards doesn’t line up with what you value most deeply in life, it becomes even harder to stick with.

Second, our goals haven’t been broken down into attainable parts. 

In order to become intentional about your life, you must start with where you are, where God has called you, not where you’d like to be, or wish you were.

 And then from there, make small, incremental changes.

As Katrina Kenison has said, “Meaning and purpose come not from accomplishing great things in the world, but simply loving those who are in front of you, doing all you can with what you have, in the time you have, in the place you are.”

The Power of the Small Tweak

In fact, the most lasting change in your life is going to take place through what I call the POWER OF THE SMALL TWEAK.

Small tweaks. Not the big drastic change, but small, incremental changes. I believe that these small tweaks have the power to make the biggest impact in your life.

Small tweaks when consistently practiced over time become habit, and habit becomes lasting change. While your season of life, and life stage may come with constraints of time, money, relationships, or resources, you still have within your actual life the agency to make small tweaks to move towards the intentional life you want to live.

Four Small Tweaks

1.     The Small Tweak of Time-

One of the biggest excuses people give for not changing or not pursuing the things they may be called to do is this: “I don’t have the time.”

I’ve always wanted to write, but I don’t have the time in my schedule to. Or I know I need to take care of my body, I just don’t have the time. Or I’ve always wanted to go back to school, but with my season of life, I just can’t right now…. I don’t have the time.

This may very well be a legitimate reason. As I mentioned earlier, I’m very aware that some seasons of life bring with them constraints, constraints that we need to pay attention to. But, using the power of the small tweak of time, you can make progress towards living intentionally in an area you’ve wanted to make progress in.

The small tweak of time uses the power of 15-30 minute increments to make progress towards a goal. In this small tweak ask yourself:

What 15-30 minute chunk of time is already built into my schedule that I could use differently?

 

Many people have 15 minutes right after work to wind down, or 30 minutes after the kids are put into bed. Some have 15 minutes right before bed or 30 minutes right after the kids leave for school. How might you use that 15-minute chunk of time differently?

Instead of scrolling on your phone, what else could you use that time for? Clearing a cluttered space in your house? Putting down those words you’ve been meaning to write? Reflecting on your day in a prayerful way? Making that phone call you’ve been putting off?

15 or 30 minutes may not seem like a lot of time, but small incremental change happens in small incremental chunks of time.

 Last year I wanted to train with my husband for a 200-mile bike ride. A lofty and huge goal for someone who had never cycled before. Most of the time the goal felt very daunting and unattainable. How was I supposed to not only do the ride, but also get my body in shape for the ride?

What I found was that the small tweak of time made all the difference. Originally, I had thought I needed to ride the bike in the mornings, which proved challenging with everything else that I needed to do during that time of the day- getting the kids ready for the day and off to school, getting to work, and making the plan for the day. But I found I had time in the evenings after work, and after the kids went to bed, to get on the trainer, and ride my bike.

We lived in Seattle at the time, and it got dark around 4:30 every evening that winter, not to mention most days it was too cold to ride outside. But using time I had, and a little creativity got me to the place where once the weather got bearable to ride in again, I wasn’t starting from scratch towards this lofty goal.

2.     The Small Tweak of Triggers-

The second small tweak is to pay attention to your daily rhythm and use that rhythm to trigger or remind you of the change you want to make in your life.

Remember: small changes consistently over a longer period of time can create a BIG impact.

By paying attention to your daily rhythm, you can find things you do consistently, that either you could change slightly or that would trigger you to work towards the change you desire in your life.

For example, you may want to incorporate building relationships with your neighbors into your life, but don’t know where to start. Use the natural action of pulling into your driveway from work, as a trigger to work towards that change. Take 5-10 minutes after getting home, but before going inside, to go knock on a neighbor’s door and start building a relationship.

Or maybe the change you’d like to be more reflective on your life, hearing God’s voice and direction in a clearer way. By using daily activities such as opening and shutting doors, putting in a password on a computer, or unloading the dishwasher as a trigger to pause and ask a question of the Lord and listen for his voice, you could incorporate times of reflection into your life very easily.

I have used the time I put my kids to bed each night as a trigger to pray a blessing over them, since the time they were babies. I have also used sitting down at my desk as trigger to pause and listen before beginning to work or write.

Whatever change you want to make, listen to the wisdom of the small tweak of triggers.

 

What action can you attach to the change you want to make, so you're reminded of the change anytime the action occurs? 

Incorporating change into something you already do every day, can make all the difference in how easy it will be to implement the change into your life.

3.     The Small Tweak of Intention-

Change doesn’t happen on its own. In fact, as creatures of habit, breaking into new ways of living can actually be a hard task. Any change, will require you being intentional about implementing it.

But this intention doesn’t have to be something big you muster up- it can actually be a small tweak you make, in small moments. By changing how you think about something, you can intentionally set yourself up for working towards that change.

Let me explain.

Say you want to change the way you eat. You aren’t going to automatically do this. By using the small tweak of intention, you can make it easier to implement this change. Instead of shopping the grocery store by aisle, shop first for the things you want to start eating. You may end up winding around the grocery store to find the things on your list, but by being intentional about what you eat, you will first fill your cart with healthy options, and won’t have as much room for the things you want to give up eating.

This can work the same way with a budget.

By setting a set budget before you enter a store, you are intentionally setting yourself for sticking to what you had planned. The small tweak of intention could be implemented using a calculator to add up the prices of the things in your cart, so that you aren’t surprised when you get to the check-out line, what the total is.

These aren’t very big actions- using a calculator in the store, filling your cart with things you want to start eating first so there isn’t as much room for the things you’re giving up- but through the power of the small tweak of intention, incremental changes can be a reality in your life.

What do you want to change in your life and how might you intentionally tweak your life (remember small tweaks) to make that change stick?

4.     The Small Tweak of Invitation-

Lasting change doesn’t happen most often by pulling up your bootstraps and doing it by yourself. The small tweak of invitation brings the power of relationship into the process of change.

By inviting another person into the change, you give yourself the boost of another person’s encouragement, voice, and challenge to work towards the change we have in mind.

By not inviting people into the change we have in mind, not only are we left on our own to ‘figure it out’ but, we deprive ourselves of the help and encouragement we could have if we simply use the small tweak of invitation.

Imagine that you’d like to change the way you are talking to your kids, but you don’t tell anyone about it. If you’re in the habit of using a certain tone of voice with them, it’s going to be hard to just change it by your own will power.

But if you know your spouse or a friend is going to ask you about it, you will be more likely to be reminded about it, because you have an outside voice reinforcing the change you have in mind.

Or imagine for me that you’d like to reach your goal of having a more open house, and inviting people over for dinner more. This goal, because it involves other people at the core, can be made exponentially easier through the power of invitation.

Just tell someone close to you that you’re working towards building relationships. They may even do a lot of the work of bringing friends over, helping you in the process of building up those relationships.

Who might you invite into your life to support you towards changing? 

Small tweaks reveal that change can be broken down into manageable steps.

Tweak your time. Tweak your triggers. Tweak your intentions. Tweak your invitations.  

And watch the power of the small tweak move you closer to living more intentionally, and with a greater sense of living the life you are called to be living.

Faithful. Connected. Full of Life. 

If you're longing to find meaning in the midst of the mundane in your own life, I have a gift written just for you. My e- book called Jesus and Spit: Seeing the Miracle in the Mundane is yours FREE when you sign up here. Join me on this journey to discover the miracles God has in your ordinary life! 

How We Learn to See

When my son was two years old he had a favorite game. He’d grab all the flashlights he could find, and then grab my hand, leading me to his destination of choice. Most of the time, it was to his bedroom. He would then climb on the bedrails and balance as tall as he could to reach the light switch. His toes would curl to make sure he wouldn’t fall over the top of the rail; his little fingers stretched out and reaching northward. The lights would go out, he’d fall into bed laughing and the game would begin.

“Mama!” He’d call out. The sweet innocence of his two-year-old voice enveloping the room. “Mama!” And suddenly I’d find his little hand placing a flashlight in mine.

During the game, the room started very dark. With my eyes yet to adjust, it was pitch black. But when my little man would click on his light, suddenly there was a stream of light, illuminating everything in its path. He’d swing the light high over his head.

“Light on the ceiling!” I’d call out. “Mama!” He’d shout and shine his light on his overstuffed elephant sitting on top of his bookshelf. Then he’d laugh, knowing that two seconds before elephant was in the dark, but is now able to be seen.

Then I’d shine my light on him. “Your belly button,” or “Your toes,” I’d call out. Then the corners of his mouth would pull into a grin as the skin on his little body illuminated with a dark red hue against the backdrop of the light. And on and on the game would go.

He loved it because he understood, even at two, that what catches the light, we see in full view- everything else remaining out of focus, a little fuzzy. We can make out shapes, but not see the details.

It wasn’t lost on me during that season, how much this game was like our lives.

Seeing God in the Dark

When we have light, we can see things clearly. But often our lives don’t feel illuminated. We make out bits and pieces and shapes of the realities of our world, but most of our lives can seem left in the dark.

Can you see what God is doing in your life? Or do you find yourself wondering why you can’t see the activity of God?

Sometimes a life found in the dark, is not a choice.  When that happens, we can remain patient; it won’t be this way forever. But many other times, we don’t see, because we haven’t trained our eyes, our hearts, our minds to see the subtleties of the reality of God’s actions in our days.  

...And we must learn to see.

If you’re anything like me, you too long to see the deeper realities, the action of God, the rhythms of his grace, meeting you in the moments of your days.

You long to see- really see, those deeper realities.

 Are you, like me, longing to live a life wide awake?

God is in Your Ordinary

I want to see God in the ordinary, in the everyday realities of my ordinary life. And that’s exactly where, I believe, God wants to be found.

We can only find him in our actual lives. Not in the lives we hope to lead someday, though he will be faithful to meet you in the future. Not in the lives you wish you had lived, though certainly he was there in your past too.

It’s in people’s actual, real, day-to-day lives that God is at work, and is revealing himself to the world we inhabit.

I believe this deeply, like it’s a core part of me- that if God meets us anywhere it’s smack dab in the midst of our everyday ordinary lives.

But sadly, and often, my life is not in the state of being able to see the deeper work of God. I need that flashlight to navigate the ordinariness of my everyday life. And, I wonder, do you too?

Are you stumbling around your life, needing a flashlight to illuminate the activity of God?

Learn to See With New Eyes

In scripture, God is called ‘the One who sees.’ He’s also called The Light. Not only that, but He’s the Creator of all light. What does this mean?

 Not only does God have complete sight of the realities in our lives and world, but He’s also the Light from which these lives are illuminated.

You may just need to learn to see, again. But how do we do this? How do we learn to see as God sees?  Seeing often involves looking with new eyes at the same situations. It begins with asking God for His perspective on the seemingly small and the apparently large circumstances in our lives. 

Because maybe the way we see things isn't all there is, and we need God's flashlight of wisdom and understanding to illuminate things correctly for us. For example: 

What if God were actually announcing the wonder of the world through the kids in our lives?

What if my boy’s wonder at flashlights and your kid’s fascination with trains, and the neighbor kid’s laughter at a game of pick up football were actually tools God was using to illuminate the wonder splattered all over the canvas of His world?

How might you learn to see, if you chose to see the children in your life this way?

And what if God were talking to us through the difficulties in our relationships?

Maybe conflict is more than just frustrations, and is rather opportunities to see Christ at work in developing patience, a sense of bearing with one another and living in tension. The difficult person in your life can actually be God’s greatest asset to building character in you.

How might you learn to see, if you chose to see the deeper reality of conflict in this way?

What if God were using our hard work during our days, to draw us towards living with empathy with one another?

 When you come home, worn out from a long day of productive work, or a long day of wrangling toddlers and babies or a long day of manual labor- what if you saw your work not just as hard and draining, but as a gift. Because there are people out there who are praying to get the job you have, praying for work that brings them dignity, praying that God would move.  

There are people who are praying for your hard reality- for a job, a baby to cuddle, or a strong body that can work.  

How might you learn to see, if you chose to see the hard realities of work this way?  

You can learn to see. You can learn to be wide awake to the illumination of Christ all around you. It's right in front of you. It's in the life you're living. 

But it takes intention and a perspective shift. For if you know Christ, your whole life is the flashlight of God, illuminating His presence through your ordinary life, to your corner of the world.

Maybe it starts with praying this prayer each day this week: 

Jesus, the One who saw life with complete clarity. May you shine the light of your understanding and wisdom on our lives today, that we too might learn from you how to live life illuminated by the Holy Spirit, and clear in our mission. May the conflict and pain, the joy and the mundane all draw us closer to your side. Shine the flashlight of your presence all over our lives, that we may reflect your light in our little corners of the world. Amen.

 

For when we learn to see, we find our lives awakened to abundance, fullness and significance- flashlights and conflict and wonder and all.

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If you're longing to find meaning in the midst of the mundane in your own life, I have a gift written just for you. My e- book called Jesus and Spit: Seeing the Miracle in the Mundane is yours FREE when you sign up here. Join me on this journey to discover the miracles God has in your ordinary life! 

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