Too much

Making a "chore" fun, I asked the compassionate one to resurrect all the fall decorations and tuck away the summer ones. The next day, as I settle in for some drip time, my attention falls upon the mantle: a mix of summer and fall and entirely too much. I chuckle and then I realize. I realize that sometime our schedules are just too much.

Sometimes we need to say, "no," but to what? I make a quick list of my commitments. Which of these need a no? They're all good. Which ones on the list won't last? Which ones can I come back to later? 

It's so difficult to put away good, valuable and worthwhile tasks and commitments. As I look at my favorite spring tulips (silk flowers, embarassingly a favorite) and recall that if I put them away for a season or two, when I find them again in March, they look more lovely.
What if I took something off my schedule for just a season? Would it appear more precious when it returned? 

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to laugh;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil--this is God's gift to man. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 12-13

When our Bible study parts for the summer, it's okay. It's time for a change of pace. But in fall, glancing through the list of names attending and the feel of a new workbook in hand, I can't wait to get started again; God's gift to me. The off-season makes the resuming sweeter.

When the calculating one says, "Mom, I want to read to you," and I begrudgingly snuggle in beside her, I do the task out of discipline, and then my heart is filled with joy. This is God's gift to momma. This is a season that won't last! And so I know that time with my golden heads will not be struck from the list, but that which can wait will. It is a constant prioritization.

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:17

What do you need to give up, even if just for a season? Make a list of your commitments then talk with God. Consider these questions. Which of these won't last? Which of these brings me joy; is God's gift to me? Which of these need striking?