“That’s a Great Idea, but I Don’t Have Time…”

The other day I had a great idea. It’s an idea for a new project and I think it could be really successful or at the very least enjoyable, but there is a problem. I am really, really, really busy right now. Along with my day to day ministry work, both for the church and AMOKArts, I have a few larger events coming up, that will require somewhat new material, not to mention a doctoral dissertation that has been languishing. The new project would be a lot of fun, but I don’t feel like I can afford to start one more thing. So what do I do? Do I just let that idea go? No, because it might be something God will use in my life in one way or another. How do you handle a great idea, when you already have a full plate?

A few things come to mind:

1. Prayer for discernment. There is a remote possibility that God wants to move this project to the front of the list, so you can’t ignore that possibility. On the other hand you might be suffering from the shiny object syndrome that comes from a lack of focus. That can really happen easily when a meaningful project is in the tough stuff phase (like my dissertation). It’s usually best to power through and finish things, but discernment is needed here as well. God’s timing is always perfect.
2. Record and file away. If you discern that the timing for the project is not now, don’t completely dismiss it. Write it down, do a couple sketches or whatever it takes to bring the project back to the forefront when its time comes. That’;s what I’m doing with this one. I think it’s a great idea, and that it will still be a great idea when I have the time to work on it.
3. Look at your schedule. We all need to get things done. Faithfulness demands it, but we also have other needs, rest, time for family, time to do our jobs, etc. All of those things are important. Look at your schedule. Do you have large blocks of wasted time? (I’m not talking about family time, devotion time or resting time, those are not at all wasted time and treating them as such will have immense consequences. I paid a lot to learn that lesson and I am giving it to you for free.) What I’m talking about are immense amounts of time on social media and other distractions. Surrendering some of that time to your projects will open up time to finish the pressing projects and eventually make time for new ones.

One of the great equalizers of life is the 24 hour day. We all have the same amount of time and how we use it is very important. When you don’t have time to do everything you want to do, picking and choosing becomes very important. Discern the best, get it done and store the rest. If it’s really important, God will get you to it.

Prayer Request

Hey everyone if you think of it today, I would appreciate your prayers. A few months ago, I had a little health scare and ended up in the emergency room. Turns out it was not the heart issue I thought I was having, but it revealed another condition with my kidneys that I have had evidently along. Today I am going to see a specialist to determine a course of treatment. I praise God that my recent tests are showing better numbers, but I would still appreciate your prayers today.

The Great Physician has this.