The Big Picture
Hey! I know it's been a while since my last post. It has just been a crazy, hectic, stressful week. Yet again! And I am positive you all know what I mean! But, out of it all, there has been a message. There has been a very common theme to it all! That constant has been me finding the big picture to it all, focusing on that, and moving forward. So today I wanted to write down my thoughts about it, and I hope that it can help shine some light in your life, too!
How often do you find yourself setting down to a To-Do List a mile long? If you're like most Americans, your answer is probably everyday! And, if you're a mom, wife, or student, you probably can't even find a stopping point on your list. Breaking down all of those things that can weigh on you may seem impossible, but as I've had some hard lessons in perspective recently, it truly helps so much! Not so much prioritizing your to do's, but figuring out it fits into your big picture. Will it really matter at all next week? Is this helping you reach a goal that you're working towards, or is it wasting your time? Is this causing you more harm than it is good? Those are all questions we have to know the answer to.
Early last week I had my first college algebra exam, I was SO focused on that one individual score on that ONE test, that I started to get tunnel vision. I started losing sight of the big picture. Thank GOD for such a loving, supportive husband, because he directly pulled me back to reality. We analyzed the big picture together, and I soon realized that what was SUCH a big deal to me that one day, was only a tiny drop in the bucket for that final grade in the class. Was it important? Well yes, of course it was! But was it as big of deal as it seemed at the time? Not at all. Everything we do is just a step in the direction of a bigger focus. To add even more perspective to it, during the time before, during, and after my test, that was my SOLE focus in life. Afterwards, I was worried about it still, even though it was done and that was that. Life can alter your priorities really quick, because an hour later my husband and I had sat down to lunch to try and relax, only to receive a phone call from the kids school saying that Ben and Jonas were both running temperatures over 103. Within the next hour I was setting in the pediatricians office holding my boys praying that God would cool their bodies and take their sickness away as the doctor diagnosed them both with Strepthroat. Suddenly, and never again, did my little math test seem relevant!
It's almost as if every time I start to focus on something that shouldn't be taking that much focus out of me, that God redirects me completely. He's teaching. We just have to listen. It can hard to balance everything we do in this world. I struggle with simple things like making small decisions when my plate is too full. If I am too focused on too much, I can't even distinguish what is truly important in my life. Clearing things off, and FOCUSING on where I'm going helps me make a clear decision and in the right direction. The things that matter often get camouflaged into the things that don't. Creating added stress for no reason. At the end of the day, there's only a few things that really matter. After all, today could be our last day on Earth.
Everyone faces battles that are unique to them, to their family, and to their future. You never know what someone is facing behind closed doors, that's just a known part of life. But how you handle your business, for you, your family, and future. That is YOUR big picture! You may find that your big picture doesn't always align 100% with someone else, and that is okay! Because while you handle your life one day at a time, so is everyone else with theirs!
So as you go through your life, remember this. If you stick a bucket under the faucet and turn the water on, and you fill it up. Now you have a bucket full of water, do you set there and ponder on the fact that while you have a bucket full of water, it took a million small drops of water in that bucket to make it look full? That's normally how our thoughts are trained to think. You see the big picture. But, I promise you, without a bucket full of a million individual drops, that bucket would be empty. So live everyday knowing that you're adding a drop to your bucket. Whether the drops are good, bad, or marvelous, they are getting added, and you're working towards filling up your bucket. Focus on what matters, make it count for something more, because life is entirely too short to not!
How often do you find yourself setting down to a To-Do List a mile long? If you're like most Americans, your answer is probably everyday! And, if you're a mom, wife, or student, you probably can't even find a stopping point on your list. Breaking down all of those things that can weigh on you may seem impossible, but as I've had some hard lessons in perspective recently, it truly helps so much! Not so much prioritizing your to do's, but figuring out it fits into your big picture. Will it really matter at all next week? Is this helping you reach a goal that you're working towards, or is it wasting your time? Is this causing you more harm than it is good? Those are all questions we have to know the answer to.Early last week I had my first college algebra exam, I was SO focused on that one individual score on that ONE test, that I started to get tunnel vision. I started losing sight of the big picture. Thank GOD for such a loving, supportive husband, because he directly pulled me back to reality. We analyzed the big picture together, and I soon realized that what was SUCH a big deal to me that one day, was only a tiny drop in the bucket for that final grade in the class. Was it important? Well yes, of course it was! But was it as big of deal as it seemed at the time? Not at all. Everything we do is just a step in the direction of a bigger focus. To add even more perspective to it, during the time before, during, and after my test, that was my SOLE focus in life. Afterwards, I was worried about it still, even though it was done and that was that. Life can alter your priorities really quick, because an hour later my husband and I had sat down to lunch to try and relax, only to receive a phone call from the kids school saying that Ben and Jonas were both running temperatures over 103. Within the next hour I was setting in the pediatricians office holding my boys praying that God would cool their bodies and take their sickness away as the doctor diagnosed them both with Strepthroat. Suddenly, and never again, did my little math test seem relevant!
It's almost as if every time I start to focus on something that shouldn't be taking that much focus out of me, that God redirects me completely. He's teaching. We just have to listen. It can hard to balance everything we do in this world. I struggle with simple things like making small decisions when my plate is too full. If I am too focused on too much, I can't even distinguish what is truly important in my life. Clearing things off, and FOCUSING on where I'm going helps me make a clear decision and in the right direction. The things that matter often get camouflaged into the things that don't. Creating added stress for no reason. At the end of the day, there's only a few things that really matter. After all, today could be our last day on Earth.
Everyone faces battles that are unique to them, to their family, and to their future. You never know what someone is facing behind closed doors, that's just a known part of life. But how you handle your business, for you, your family, and future. That is YOUR big picture! You may find that your big picture doesn't always align 100% with someone else, and that is okay! Because while you handle your life one day at a time, so is everyone else with theirs!
So as you go through your life, remember this. If you stick a bucket under the faucet and turn the water on, and you fill it up. Now you have a bucket full of water, do you set there and ponder on the fact that while you have a bucket full of water, it took a million small drops of water in that bucket to make it look full? That's normally how our thoughts are trained to think. You see the big picture. But, I promise you, without a bucket full of a million individual drops, that bucket would be empty. So live everyday knowing that you're adding a drop to your bucket. Whether the drops are good, bad, or marvelous, they are getting added, and you're working towards filling up your bucket. Focus on what matters, make it count for something more, because life is entirely too short to not!
Comments
Post a Comment