Take Some Time!

Our world is busy….it moves, and moves, and moves…if you don’t get out of the rat race every once in a while you will misses more than you catch.

There used to be a program on the radio called Catharsis, it came on late Monday nights when I was in collage. Every once in a while I would get a chance to hear it when I worked late nights. The name of the show was Catharsis. The program was a clearinghouse of sorts and people used to call in just to talk and think through the things that were on their hearts and minds in a quiet and nurturing environment. It was a far cry from the screaming and shouting that often takes place on Monday on the sports channel or what we can often see on television on the political talk shows. It was a place where people came to think out loud, talk about what matters and to have an intelligent exchange with someone who cared enough to listen. That program made me begin to take a good look at my own life, and take the time to think things through so I could appreciate my life and make some changes. I have spent the last couple of weeks doing exactly that. In the midst of all the activity around me. I took some time out to slow down and pay attention to my life and prayerfully look around to see where I was, and to understand the value of what I was doing.

Nothing works well if you don’t maintain it and slowing down is part of maintaining your life so you can get where you want to go. Every once in a while, you should stop, and sit in the quiet and think about where you are and where you want to go. It is an exciting time to take inventory and think about life. Our schedules and responsibilities are enormous, and they demand our time and attention daily. They will never stop moving unless you make them, it’s like waiting until you have been lost for an hour before you ask for directions. You have to honor, nurture yourself and your experiences long enough to stop and appreciate what you actually have in front of you.

In the movie, It’s a Wonderful Life Jimmie Stewarts character has so many blessings right in front of him. He is blessed and has tons of gifts that his responsibilities and problems have made him overlook. It is not until the end of the movie that he realizes how truly fortunate and blessed he truly is in spite of the parts of his life that are far from perfect. None of us live perfect lives, and if we did we would get bored real quickly. When you are in a perpetual state of movement, it is hard to appreciate and realize how fortunate and blessed you genuinely are. It is not hard to overlook your blessings when all you are doing is moving. When you spend your time ducking and dodging bullets, and putting out fires it’s easy to forget the blessings that are staring you right in the face.

Put some downtime in your schedule, if you must put an appointment on your calendar and don’t let anything take it off. Take a long hard look at your life. Think about what you love about your life and think about what you want to change. Take the time to think about your mistakes and then think about what they have taught you, so you can learn the lesson and move forward. Think about the gift that is your life and what that gift means to you. Look at the people, the friendships, and the treasures that you have been entrusted with, and think about what kind of steward you have been over them, and if you need to make some changes.

Most importantly each of us should ask ourselves the question are we living, and are we living fully? Life is a gift, and you will miss so much of it if you wait until everything is perfect to live it. There is no ideal time to do the things that you want to do, take the risk and do it now! Take some time. Access your life and see what you want to change. Be willing to change everything if you have to it’s worth it!