Reset Your "To Do" List for Jesus
Photo image courtesy Nancy C. Williams
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.” – Hebrews 10:23-24 (NKJV)
I’m a list-maker. Unless a task is scribbled among my day’s activities, chances are good it won’t happen.
My measurement of each day’s success depends in part on how many things I’ve checked off. Heaven forbid I get to the grocery store without my shopping list!
Unfortunately, I often treat my spiritual life with the same attitude. Quiet time? Check. Prayer? Done. Encouragement of others? Sent the card. Generosity? The check is in the mail. Hosting? Got the iced tea brewed.
There are more spiritual practices, of course. As a Christian, I try to maintain daily habits for an effective walk with Jesus. But it's hard to squeeze everything into my calendar and still feed the dog!
As a result, my spiritual life often becomes a to-do list to simply check off. It can turn into a source of pride—a look-at-me opportunity for vanity. Or, I can despair because I didn’t measure up to my own expectations. Either way, I fall into an unprofitable rut. No happiness. No purpose. No love.
That’s when it’s time to hit the reset button.
The real reasons to exercise Godly disciplines are to honor our heavenly Father, draw closer to Jesus, and share His love with others.
If I pray, my entire focus should be on God, a simple conversation with Him. When God speaks, I need to be ready to listen to His Holy voice. If I pull out my Bible, it’s important to ask, “What truths will the Holy Spirit teach me today through His word?” When I fast, my purpose is to take my attention off food and use those hungry moments to thirst for God’s directives.
On Sundays, it means truly diving into worship of the living God and celebrating His Sabbath rest, not letting my mind wander to the next thing on my list. At times when we have guests in our home, my mission is to make them feel welcome, forgetting about my worries over lackluster snacks. All I really need anyway to share hospitality is a container of ice cream and the joy of the Lord!
Whatever my actions for Jesus, He needs to be my first priority, my first love, receiving all my gratitude and reverence. He alone occupies the center of my heart. He can set my feet on new pathways, too...some of them exciting and even scary, but always according to His loving plans.
If you’re stuck in drudgery, ask Jesus to change your spiritual to-do list for Him. Let’s rip up the pages of our self-imposed obligations and run to Him instead. As we fall to our feet before Him, we can count on Him to lead us where we need to go, to tell us which disciplines are most important for the moment. As we obey and worship Him, we can count it all as pure joy!
Questions for Reflection:
- What types of things seem to get in your way when it comes to spending quality time with God?
- What can you do to eliminate the “noise” that gets in the way of you spending more time with God?
- Take a moment to ask God to help you find the courage to hit that reset button in your life for a better tomorrow with Him.
