RHYTHM AND REST
But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect—life in its fullness until you overflow! John 10:10 (TPT)
Monday we talked about the power of being. We learned that becoming is about the commitments we make every day. I want to clarify that, to me, intentionality is not equivalent to the ¨no days off¨ concept. I get it, I respect it, but I personally need a break to recharge. Days off are good, and they are welcome here. :)
Today, I want to share about how I manage my time. Last year I discovered a concept called ¨rhythm¨ and quickly realized it worked better for me than routine.
Maybe you´re the type of person who thrives on routine, strict meal plans, and color-coded to-do lists. I thought I was, but quarantine became an opportunity to slow down a bit. In the beginning of quarantine last year God began to teach me to protect my peace. Did you know peace is actually a gift Jesus gives us? I realized that if I was lacking peace it wasn't because God had not supplied it, but because I hadn't taken good care of it. In Mark 2:27, Jesus said, ¨Man was not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath for man¨. Similarly, I think man was not made for routine, but routine for man. In other words, we are not slaves to our to-do lists! I had to pursue peace in my day to day through the way I managed my time.
I like structure, I like having a plan, and I like lists….lots of them! But if I'm honest, some days the routine felt more like an impossibly high standard than a structure meant to help me manage my time. That's why in 2020 I started implementing rhythm in my mornings. Essentially, I complete the same tasks but with freedom to live in the moment. Let me explain:
My ideal routine used to look something like this:
* I say ¨ideal routine¨ because I RARELY got this done in the time I had allotted.
Now, my morning rhythm includes:
Some days I start with a walk outside to get my body moving. On days I´m the first to wake up, I spend time with Jesus first and enjoy the quiet house. Other days, I jump out of bed and hit the gym, then come back and spend time with Jesus after my shower and breakfast. Especially during quarantine, I found that this gave me so much more freedom to just enjoy the things I do. And after ¨dancing through my morning rhythm¨, I sit down to work and study.
A routine has specific time slots for each of these activities, which means if I were to run a few minutes over in my devotional or workout, it would backtrack me for the rest of the day. Or worse, days I overslept, which happened a lot in 2020, would throw off my entire routine. Am I the only one? Having rhythm allows me to take as much time as I need for each activity and be present without being rushed to move on to the next thing. *Disclaimer: I work and study from home, which makes it a lot easier to manage my own time. However, I think this could work for anybody looking to get certain things done without the pressure of a strict routine.
I consider routines are helpful for getting things done in a specific time, and rhythm is good for being present to the progress. For me, both are essential. Try rhythm and let me know how it goes!
Also, please make sure to schedule-in rest!! Do things that make you happy this year. Do things that spark your joy and make you feel alive. Needing rest does not make us weak, but not getting enough of it will. Rest is a gift, and actually, a commandment. Take time to recharge spirit, soul, and body.
Here are a few practical tips that help me manage my time:
Set a 30-45 minute timer and focus on one task. Get rid of all distractions, notifications, and scrolling. For the next 30-45 minutes, train your brain to focus and get the task done. Then take a scroll break, check notifications, etc.
From my large To-Do list, I like to make a ¨Commitment List¨. I write down just a few things I can commit to getting done in the day and plan my day around that.
I tend to be more productive when I learn first and work second. This doesn´t always look like taking a class before work, it could simply be reading 10 minutes in the morning, watching a YouTube video of a skill I want to acquire, or even researching a topic that interests me. I am much more motivated to produce once I've fueled my spirit and creativity.
Learn to say ¨no¨ to things that didn't quite fit into your priorities at the moment. Priorities change in different seasons, and we need godly wisdom to discern where we should invest our time and energy. It's okay to say no to some things to say YES to the important things! :)
I really hope this series is motivating you! Don´t forget that Jesus came to give us an ABUNDANT LIFE, what are we gonna do with it?
