Once upon a time, my
agenda was snow-white. The occasional specks of ink on my agenda were mainly activities relating to keeping me alive—hospital
appointments, physiotherapy and home care. That is now history of past events. It is no longer
breaking news that Irene’s plate is always fully loaded these days. Hence my
absence from the blogosphere over the past three weeks.
The run-up to the Hit
The Street For Their Feet Charity Walk on April 25th was hectic. It
left me breathless. I have not had time to catch my breath since then. All the
donations coming from across three continents had to be acknowledged and
receipted irrespective of the amount because each of them made a difference and
added value taking us to our set goal. I am so grateful to God that I have much
to acknowledge. The administrative part of the Charity is still ongoing.
It
was in the midst of that that I realized that I had only thirty days (now
seventeen) left to the wedding of the dear daughter of Zion who God used to
support me during the year post my amputation. She cared for me and attended to my needs during those early days while
I learnt to regain my autonomy and to get
accustomed to my new definition of normal as an amputee. She has been a blessing to me. I had committed to help
translate her dream to reality and time was fast running out. I was in
overdrive now.
Alongside came the preparations for the Annual Conference, which took place in my church
last weekend. While we were getting ready, I had to go for a surgery to correct
what the doctors termed “a rare form of adhesion” which got my tracheotomy scar
stuck to my trachea. It was a day
surgery. I was back in my kitchen barely 3 hours after the surgery. But it was
a restless and rather painful night afterward
and has required a twice a week trip to the hospital to keep an eye on it.
In the
midst of all these, my accountability partners and very concerned friends were
keeping a tab on me. They wanted to know where I was, regarding my pending
assignments—completion of my book and getting the Feet Of Grace website running
to name a few. And the pressure mounted.
That was when I had to
pause. I needed to take a deep breath. I was feeling overwhelmed and
overcharged. I have a passionate aversion to idleness with a relentless drive
for purpose, perfection and making a difference. It appears that this
combination has pushed me to the other side of the spectrum.
The outlook for the
next four months seems even more charged
with several planned travels, ministry project and pending Ministry training
assignments. It was the time for me to pause and listen.
I can do all things
through Christ Who strengthens, empowers and infuses me with strength from His
limitless stores. But I am not called to do everything.
Having a clear
guidance and direction from God as to what He wants me to do, when, where and
how He wants me to do the things He has called me to do has become an
imperative. I must pause and listen. If I am not quiet, I cannot hear Him
speaking to me. It is only when I am
getting instructions from Him that I can balance all the many balls that I have
to juggle in the air. It is only by His grace that I can do the things He has
called me to do. I need to pause, listen and balance.
I know God also
has a deep aversion to idleness. Several passages in the Bible points in that
direction.
"And about the eleventh hour he went
out and found others standing around; and he said to them, 'Why have you
been standing here idle all day long?'” – Matthew 20:6
“"The one who is unwilling to work
shall not eat." – 2Thess. 3:10
“You should mind your own business and work
with your hands, just as we told you,” – 1Thess 4:11
I also know that
God does not want me to burn out or run on my own steam, I cannot be useful to
Him that way. Therefore, I must insert precious times of rest into the
equation.
Several key points
shone brightly like a lighthouse on a dark night as I processed all the above. I will share some of them with you.
1.
I have to learn to say NO:
If
I am going to stay focused on the goal and accomplish the tasks God laid on my
heart for this year, I have to give myself the permission to say No. First to
myself and then to others. A young man challenged me recently to master the art of No in an excellent article he posted on his blog - The Art of No. It is not just about saying No but how to manage a No response. What do I mean by
saying no to myself? I mean I cannot do everything that comes to my mind even
if it sounds great and will benefit someone.
2.
I need
to prioritize:
Some
tasks are important, but they are not urgent. Some things that God calls us to
do are urgent and important because someone is waiting at the other side to
receive of it. I cannot afford to be lackadaisical about the things that are
important in God’s kingdom agenda. The fact that He has not issued a deadline
the way my bosses at work would do does not mean that I can do my God-ordained
assignments at my convenience.
3.
Ultimately, my accountability is to God:
God
has called me to be a good steward of the resources He has assigned to me to
manage. These include the talents, gifts and abilities with which He endowed me.
As a steward of God’s resources, there will come a time I much give an account
of what I have done with these resources. As well as how I have fared with the
responsibilities and tasks He assigned to me. Doing His will and fulfilling His
call upon my life requires my utmost attention and dedication.
God’s
all-sufficient grace is available and richly abounding to each of us so that we
having all sufficiency in all things and at all times may abound to every good
work. I want to abound in good works. My earnest desire is to impact lives for
good, make a difference and leave a lasting legacy. I must, therefore, run the
race set before me tapping into the rich grace available to me and with my gaze
focused on the ultimate goal.
Over the coming
months, I will do my best to keep this space we share together to enrich and
encourage one another active while I strive to maintain a balance in my
responsibilities and commitments. There will be guest posts here, and I hope to
see the blog relocate to the Feet Of Grace website as soon as it is up. In the
interim, I ask you to uphold me in prayers; that I may have strength to do what
I am called can do, courage to accept those that I cannot do and the wisdom to
know the difference. Pray also that God will send me help fitted for this
assignment.
I pray that each
of you will flourish in the place where God has assigned you.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed with so many things to do? Share and let's encourage one another.
