Our Stories
Get Off the Train
By Aaron Soderlund | posted 09/06/2007
"This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24)
Right now, I'm sitting in my little shared office on the bottom floor of the Windermere office in Bellevue. It's the middle of the day and no other agents on my floor are here. It's me, the sound of my computer humming, and my thoughts. I tell you this to point out that I should have been writing this a long time ago. (Although perhaps not while I could be better off working.) There are a lot of things that I should have done a long time ago, but I've put them off and put them off.
For the past few weeks, I've been in one of those phases where I just feel overwhelmed. Between work, home, life, and other commitments, it seems as if I'm being pulled in every direction every day and I'm stretching myself too thin. Emails have gone unnoticed and responded to. Personal things have gone unattended to. All because I managed to feel overwhelmed. And you know, honestly, it was very subtle. I don't even really think I noticed until this week that I'd been doing it. Satan's sneaky that way.
This morning, however, I've decided that this phase is officially over. It might mean that I'm up all night tonight getting everything done, but I've made a conscious decision that it ends today. No more just doing what needs to get done, but today marks the day that I even do some things ahead of schedule.
For me, it all starts with a decision. A realization that, "This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24) By acknowledging that this day was given to me by God, I don't feel quite as much like I'm able to waste it. I've got things to do. I've got tasks appointed to me. This day is not about me. It's about Jesus. It's about doing His work. "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through him." (Colossians 3:17) I don't think that God has been very glorified in my attitude the last few weeks. It's not that I've been frustrated, upset, or grumpy. I've just been putting things off that affect Him. In particular, putting my work, life, and the excitement of Cougar football before Him. (Don't get me wrong, God wants me, and you, to get excited about Cougar football. After all, it is His team.)
So today, Wednesday, September 5, 2007, I have thrown myself off the "self-inflicted, overwhelmed with life" train. The landing didn't feel great. Trains move slowly but are very powerful. And it was a slow process to where I was before this morning. But I'm on my feet running full speed. I'm catching up on what I've put off. I've asked God for His forgiveness. And I've got a newfound energy that I haven't had in a month or so.
Don Miller in his book, "Blue Like Jazz" (page 185) quotes his friend, "Don, if we are not willing to wake up in the morning and die to ourselves, perhaps we should ask ourselves whether or not we are really following Jesus." That pretty much summed it up for me.
To respond to this message, email Aaron at aaron@windermere.com.
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"This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24)
Right now, I'm sitting in my little shared office on the bottom floor of the Windermere office in Bellevue. It's the middle of the day and no other agents on my floor are here. It's me, the sound of my computer humming, and my thoughts. I tell you this to point out that I should have been writing this a long time ago. (Although perhaps not while I could be better off working.) There are a lot of things that I should have done a long time ago, but I've put them off and put them off. For the past few weeks, I've been in one of those phases where I just feel overwhelmed. Between work, home, life, and other commitments, it seems as if I'm being pulled in every direction every day and I'm stretching myself too thin. Emails have gone unnoticed and responded to. Personal things have gone unattended to. All because I managed to feel overwhelmed. And you know, honestly, it was very subtle. I don't even really think I noticed until this week that I'd been doing it. Satan's sneaky that way. This morning, however, I've decided that this phase is officially over. It might mean that I'm up all night tonight getting everything done, but I've made a conscious decision that it ends today. No more just doing what needs to get done, but today marks the day that I even do some things ahead of schedule. For me, it all starts with a decision. A realization that, "This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalm 118:24) By acknowledging that this day was given to me by God, I don't feel quite as much like I'm able to waste it. I've got things to do. I've got tasks appointed to me. This day is not about me. It's about Jesus. It's about doing His work. "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through him." (Colossians 3:17) I don't think that God has been very glorified in my attitude the last few weeks. It's not that I've been frustrated, upset, or grumpy. I've just been putting things off that affect Him. In particular, putting my work, life, and the excitement of Cougar football before Him. (Don't get me wrong, God wants me, and you, to get excited about Cougar football. After all, it is His team.) So today, Wednesday, September 5, 2007, I have thrown myself off the "self-inflicted, overwhelmed with life" train. The landing didn't feel great. Trains move slowly but are very powerful. And it was a slow process to where I was before this morning. But I'm on my feet running full speed. I'm catching up on what I've put off. I've asked God for His forgiveness. And I've got a newfound energy that I haven't had in a month or so. Don Miller in his book, "Blue Like Jazz" (page 185) quotes his friend, "Don, if we are not willing to wake up in the morning and die to ourselves, perhaps we should ask ourselves whether or not we are really following Jesus." That pretty much summed it up for me. To respond to this message, email Aaron at aaron@windermere.com. |
