“Life management is really spiritual life management.” ~ Elizabeth George
I spent three hours this week at a conference that was supposed to give advice on how to become a better speaker. Long story short, it was a waste of most of that time — one long plug for a set of CD’s they were selling for ONLY $5,000 (I kept waiting for someone to say, “But wait, there’s more!). A big part of what they did was talk about branding; the concept that if people see you with celebrities, they assume you know that celebrity and are more likely to buy your product. I could identify the speaker only in most of the pictures they flashed, and so the great impression of the celebrity was lost on me. I told B, who came with me, that the people I would want to brand with wouldn’t be recognized by the general population. That being said, I do want to plug two of the bloggers I follow since I feel they do an excellent job in the area of Managing Spiritual Life.
Kim Sorgius at notconsumed.com
I stumbled on Kim’s blog while I was looking up job charts. I started to read her posts about being a single mom who homeschools her four kids, found encouragement and inspiration to be a better mom, and I continued to buy her amazing products. In December 2017, she had a guest post that got me thinking I could . . . should . . . maybe . . . start blogging. It was because of her blog that I’m here today! Take a minute to check out her store. My top two favorites are her JOY prayer cards and her Ultimate Family Discipleship Collection!
Arabah is a blogger I’ve just stumbled on recently — like in the past month. She has some awesome praying plans that usually include a journal and has a section about setting Grace Goals.
I was honestly trying to see if one of them would guest post here — a type of blogging branding, but one I can support. These are the type of people I would happily post pictures of myself with on my blog because what they do has improved my life, and I admire who they are and what they represent.
Back to Life Management for Busy Women!
Part 1: Managing Your Spiritual Life
The first thing that really caught my attention in part one is the idea of a time tithing. As a Christian, I’m called to give the best of my first fruits — why shouldn’t that include the first part of each day? Elizabeth says, “putting Bible time first is my personal need for God’s wisdom and strength throughout the day.” Remember the children’s Bible song that goes, “This is the day that the Lord has made” . . . I think I may have forgotten it a bit when I sit down and make up my TO DO LIST the night before. It’s not MY day, MY list, MY will that needs to be taken into consideration — it is His. “Never major on the minors” Elizabeth reminds me. She also advises to “hold each activity up to the Lord and ask in prayer, ‘Father, does this fit into Your plan for my life? Is this a major or a minor?'” Hanging on a post-it note (have I mentioned how much I adore post-it notes?) on the emergency lights button of my van is the reminder
He > i
Trevor mentioned that he thinks I’m too busy. I’m having to sit down and really ponder if I’m pursuing majors or minors. I also need to be sure to pray for the appointments He has for me as well as the ones I have set for me. I need to be sure to take a breath when His appointments “conflict” with mine.
Part 2: Managing Your Physical Life
Who else just gulped? OK, people, let’s be brave together!
- Your body is a temple. “What do others see when they look at your life and lifestyle?” I hope that people see me happily involved with my kids, my church, and serving others. I hope that the hot mess I often feel like doesn’t come through, but I’m starting to think it is.
- Your body is bought with a price. “What are you allowing yourself to be mastered by?”
- Exercise regularly. This needs to be addressed in my life. I’ve started to do a 7-minute workout, but I’m not consistent, and I’m thinking I really need to do more. As an ex-ballerina and ex-marathoner, I feel the need to get out there and physically push myself. But then it comes back to the question of where do I cut something out so I have the time? AHHHH!
- Seek proper sleep and rest.
- Watch what you eat. If you need some inspiration, check out my review of the FAST Metabolism D.I.E.T I did in February (can I brand myself?).
- Keep a schedule. I have a routine for my week, and we stick to it pretty well — we have to in order to make sure everyone gets where they are going when they need to be. At breakfast each morning, I go over what is planned for the day so all the kids know where I will be and where I expect them to be and at what times. This helps cut out the craziness — until someone remembers last-minute that they are involved in something. I think part of keeping a schedule is also to remain flexible — remember last chapter we talked about God’s appointments for us?
- Take care of your appearance. I’m not talking about high maintenance here. I personally don’t wear make-up or clothes of the newest fashion, but I do make sure I feel good in what I wear, keep my body clean, and I try to smile often. Cue the lights and music: “You’re never fully dressed without a smile!”
I really hope you are reading these books along with me. If you don’t have a copy, please stop by my store to pick one up. This journey has been fun, but I would love for it to be AMAZING! The only way for that to happen is for you join in so we can start a discussion and connect with each other. I want to get my own branding going — rich discussions about books and topics that will enrich our lives.
Before you move on today, leave a comment about what touched you in these chapters. How do you manage (or mis-manage) your spiritual and physical life?
Thank you sharing bloggers that have inspired you. My celebrities probably would not be recognizable to most folks either. I love planning and having a schedule.. good reminder that we need to remember WHO comes first.