Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Psalms 90:12, KJV

 

Do you feel "squeezed" for time. I have been talking to quite a number of people lately who are starting to feel at their wit's end because there are so many demands on their time. And I know that there must be something to it, because so many people have an absolutely exhausted look about them.

 

I must admit that I have been feeling it too. It reminds me of the old wildlife shows that have a Boa Constrictor squeezing the life out of its prey. They wrap their coils around their chosen victim and simply begin to squeeze. Every time their hapless victim takes a breath, the snake will just squeeze a little tighter. The prey will be able to take in less and less oxygen until it gets to the point that their lungs can't expand at all, and that's that - the Boa Constrictor claims another victim!

 

I get the impression that this is the way more and more people are feeling. Be it their jobs, school, family or even their hobbies, people are just filling their schedules more and more to the point where they are overwhelmed and more than a little bewildered. How, after all, did we ever get into this situation? Adults need their jobs to pay their bills, kids must go to school, families require attention, and we all need a little "down time" for our recreation. So, the schedule just get fuller and fuller, squeezing us to the point where we sometimes feel as if we cannot even catch our breath! 

 

Sound familiar? Welcome to the club! But what, if anything can we do about it?

 

The older I get, the more I come to realize that there is a type of time "tyranny" that our schedules exercise over us. Much of these pressures come from outside sources that are largely beyond our control, but what can we do about it? The rising cost of living requires us to keep our jobs with the long hours, and sometimes even necessitates that we get a "side-hustle" just to make ends meet. As our families grow, so too do the activities that require additional portions of our already limited schedules. We all need some type of hobby or recreation activity to recharge ourselves, as these recreational diversions are often one of the few things that give us a "release valve" to keep us from exploding under the pressure of our packed calendars.

 

So, what, if anything, can we do?

 

This is where God comes in, for those who will let Him.

 

Do you remember when you were a kid? What did you do when things were too much for you to handle? Maybe it was some chore that was just too much, maybe it was a load that was too heavy for you to pick up, or maybe it was just some challenge that you could not handle on your own. In such cases, do you remember what you did? If you were like me, you called on Mom or Dad to come help. And if you had good parents such as the ones I was blessed with, they always helped whenever help was truly needed. It's true that there were times when I thought the chore was too big or the load too heavy to manage on my own when my parents didn't go along with my line of reasoning. In such cases, they would insist that I continue to work on my own to get the job done. 

 

If it were in an area like carrying in the groceries that I was trying to do in one massive load, they would just tell me not to carry so much at once. By thus dividing the load, that which seemed impossible soon became more than manageable. And as to those areas where I really couldn't take care of them myself? In such cases, they were more than willing to help.

 

I believe this is one of the ways God helps us. If we are simply just trying to carry too much of a burden in relationship to our schedules, don't be surprised when God is not willing to help us out. There are times when we really are trying to load our schedules with unnecessary things that will crush us if we don't stop piling on. At such times, we should not be surprised that God will not take part in assisting our suicidal schedule. In such a case, we need to step back, pray for wisdom, and then begin to pare back on the areas that we would like to do, but don't have to do. Many such areas are actually detrimental for us in the long run, so don't be too distressed if you don't get help in doing everything you want to do. Sometimes we are acting like some sort of twisted schedule glutton. We all recognize the fact that we cannot eat everything that tastes good, and we all hopefully can show restraint in this area. In a like manner, we need to recognize that we can't do everything that we (or others) want us to do. That being the case, have the wisdom to show restraint.

 

And those things that we must do, but cannot accomplish on our own? Like the perfect Father that He is, God is always willing to help with the things that are genuinely needed.

 

The fact is that we all have a lot to do, and we all have well-meaning people in our lives who would like us to do even more. At some point, we have to step back and assess our lives. Is everything that we are doing completely necessary? Are we putting God's things first? Are we giving priority to our family who truly does need us the most? Can we all do some sort of "triage" where we honestly appraise our schedules in order to see what is really important, as well as those things that would be nice to do, but which are not really all that necessary? Once honestly assessed, we can then begin to cut back on the unnecessary items that are overloading our schedules to the point of collapse.

 

If you, like the vast majority of the rest of us, are feeling overwhelmed, understand you are not alone. Having said that, let's do something about it. I'm not talking about taking a saw and indiscriminately starting to "amputate" everything. I'm just talking about slowing down long enough to determine that which is most important. Take care of those things first and then fill in the rest of your time with a more reasonable schedule. God will help, so remember to pray for guidance. Your spouse also is vitally interested in your getting a more reasonable schedule - they are likely struggling under a time burden of their own. Don't be surprised if you are honestly overcommitted at work if your boss won't help you as well. After all, good employees are still hard to find, and it's likely that you are one of the good ones.

 

Finally, don't forget to "number your days aright". Your life is finite, but your eternity is not. Make absolutely sure that you are allowing the proper amount of time to serve God to the best of your ability. 

 

Sounds hard, doesn't it? It is, and we shouldn't kid ourselves as to this fact. However, it is much easier to take the time needed to examine our schedules and make the necessary adjustments in order that we do the really important things first. You will be the one deciding on what is most important, so don't be too discouraged by the task. Sometimes it is when we slow down enough to think about the most important, that we can actually speed up enough to win the race. It's like a man running a mile race while dragging an anchor. If he will just slow down long enough to see that he is indeed dragging that anchor and take the time to cut it loose, he will then have enough energy to finish the race. It's much the same in life. The only thing is, do we see it?