Overwhelmed by Your To-Do List?

Do you ever feel completely overwhelmed by your to-do list?

I sure do! If fact, more times than I'd like to admit. I've already sensed that today would be one of those overwhelming days.

Our family was out of town last week visiting my brother and his family for the Thanksgiving holiday. We had such an incredible time and what made it so special was that we just "hung out" the entire time. Our boys were completely content playing with their cousins. They had no interest in going to local attractions or doing any sight-seeing. I know... amazing, isn't it?

We returned home over the weekend and this morning reality slapped us all in the face at 5:45 am when it was time to get everyone ready for school and work. After Brody & Carson hopped on their buses, I snuggled up with a delicious cup of hazelnut coffee and my bible to have some quiet time. With so much on my plate today, I knew the best place to start was with Jesus.

I've been studying about prayer lately so I took some extra time to pray specifically through some situations that had been bothering me. When I was finished, I felt so encouraged and rejuvenated.

I grabbed a notepad and began jotting down my "to-do" list. One page turned into two pages and then three. With each turn of the notepad sheet, my encouragement turned to discouragement. I had so many items on my "to-do" list that I had to create subsections!

All that rejuvenation which held me only moments ago quickly disintegrated and I was left with a complete sense of frustration and wondering what on earth I should do first.

Am I the only woman on planet earth who can get so easily distracted and frazzled by a little piece of paper with line items on it?

Honestly, what would really happen if I didn't complete my to-do list. Well, for starters, the bills wouldn't get paid, the laundry wouldn't get done, and we'd have no food in the house.

Are you wondering what I did with that to-do list? Well, I wanted to burn it, crawl back into bed, and sleep for two more hours. Instead, I mentally handed my to-do list over to God. Since I've been studying prayer lately, I thought maybe God would help me out with my dilemma.

I told Him the things I felt were a priority for today but asked Him to show me what daily assignments He had chosen for me instead.

One by one, I went down the list and as I did, I realized something. Some of these things really
didn't need to be done today. In fact, they could wait until tomorrow or even the end of this week. I also noticed that some of these items could be delegated to other family members.

The most amazing thing was that God actually added some items to my to-do list. One was to send an encouraging email to a friend whose father just had open heart surgery last week. Another was to call my mom and wish her a "Happy Birthday" ... I COMPLETELY forgot it was her birthday today! I'm so glad Jesus reminded me. Another addition to my list was to tell my husband three things that I love about him and let him know how much I appreciate all that he does for our family.

Wow! God had given me three new assignments and I hadn't even had breakfast yet.

So what has this little exercise accomplished for me this morning?

For starters, I no longer am discouraged. If fact, that overwhelming feeling has been replaced with joy and a wonderful sense of peace. Also, my list has been condensed in a way that is realistic for my day. But most importantly I made a conscious decision to take my concerns to God right away instead of trying to figure things out on my own. He responded to my plea for help by showing me what's really important and what matters to Him today.

Do you have a long "to-do" list right now?

If so, I'd like to challenge you to take that list to God. Prayerfully ask Him to show you what items on that list needs to be accomplished today. I bet He'll prompt you to scratch off some things and delegate others to family members. He may even add some other daily assignments that you didn't even think about.

Oh, I sure hope He does! If so, please let me know. I'd love to hear how He's working in your life today.