The Juggler

The world record for juggling stands at 14 balls at one time and is held by Alex Barron. If you want to watch him breaking the record you can click on this link. So, why am I talking about juggling on this blog? Well, I feel it has a lot to say to many of us at the moment and I am including myself in this group.

What are you juggling at the moment? Are you feeling a little overwhelmed with all the balls in the air? I know that I have felt a little overawed at times. It just seems that the more balls one has in the air, the more we are tempted to add others to the game. However, the odds are always going to be stacked against us - the more we try to juggle, the greater chance there is of us letting the balls drop. So, what is the solution? 

Well, we would be wise to listen to the words of Jesus. He spoke to a different generation, but his words are still very relevant for us all.

³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6)

What are you juggling at the moment?

What things are perhaps being dropped or neglected?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Busy is not a sign of being productive

“It is not enough to be industrious; so are the ants. What are you industrious about?”
― Henry David Thoreau

We have all complained at how busy we are!
...School kids speak of having too much homework and being too busy with extra mural activities. ...Parents complain of running all over the place - "Life is too busy!"
...Grandparents laugh at the notion of being "retired" as life is equally busy for them.
...No matter if you are in the Corporate world or a full time Mom, we all have busy lives.

But here is the thing....
Busy doesn't equate to effective or productive.

We can fool ourselves into believing that our busyness is necessary. I know that I fight against this on a daily basis - there are always going to be things that demand our time and attention. Trying to separate the urgent from the 'important' is always so tricky.

Psalm 39:6 - We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth, not knowing who will spend it.

So, before you rush off into the crazy world feeling harassed, ask yourself if your 'busyness' is a mask for something else.

#justasking

Living in Grace
D3LM3

A Juggling act

Life is sometimes far too busy! It is like a juggling act. You have 9 or 10 things going on at the same time and you wonder if you are actually going to be able to keep them "up in the air" (apparently the maximum number of balls that a person can juggle is 12).

In truth, we can't juggle them all! Sure, we can juggle a few things, but as soon as we pass a critical number of balls in the air, it is only a matter of time before we drop one of them.

I am finding this to be true in my life at the moment. It is hard to say 'No!' It is hard to maintain the juggling act, when other things keep getting added to the routine. I guess, that in the end, we have to the ones to make the call - we have to say 'STOP!'

So, what are you juggling at the moment? Do you have too many balls in the air at the moment? Which one is going to get dropped and is that going to be costly?

“The trick to juggling is determining which balls are made of rubber and which ones are made of glass.” - Anon

Luke 7:31 - “How can I account for the people of this generation? They’re like spoiled children complaining to their parents, ‘We wanted to skip rope and you were always too tired; we wanted to talk but you were always too busy.’

Living in Grace
D3LM3

A full plate

Sometimes we just have too much on our plates - as the saying goes, "we have a full plate!"
Of course, this idiom could be referring to actual food on our plates, but for most of us it applies to the busy lives that we lead. We have so many things to do, that we wonder if we will ever get through the long list.

Of course, we easily justify that being busy is much better than being lazy or ill-disciplined.  However, we need to find a healthy balance in all things. Being idle is not godly, but neither is being too busy. It is a fine line to walk and often I don't get it right. I am not sure about you?

How is your schedule looking at the moment? If you are feeling overwhelmed then perhaps you need to plan a little time away from the rush of life and to ask God to help you to get back into balance.

"Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony." -Thomas Merton

1 Timothy 5:13 -  "Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also busybodies who talk nonsense, saying things they ought not to."

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Bombarded

Ever felt like you were standing on one side of a tennis court practising your shots with a 'ball machine', when all of a sudden the balls come faster and faster? It is like there is a malfunction in the machine and soon you are bombarded by the balls!

Well, if you can relate to this, can I ask what you do when this happens? Logic tells us that if you carrying on standing in the same spot you are going to get hurt, but often that is just what we do - we try and hit the balls away, but eventually it is too much.

I guess the answer lies in moving aside (out of the firing line) and somehow turning the machine off.
The machine of life won't stop, but we can move to the side for a while to get some respite and rest. Are you able to do this? I know that I need to do this from time to time - it is healthy for us to get out of the firing line and to allow God to refresh us.

Contrast these two verses:

Job 3:26 - "I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil.”

Isaiah 32:17 - The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.

Which verse speaks about you today?

Living in Grace

D3LM3