Weariness

In the last few months, I have felt weary.  I have felt like I am being dragged behind a wild horse who has taken off in every which direction.  It has felt chaotic, exhausting, and yet not very productive.  This week, I have taken some time for quiet reflection...clearing my schedule, spending good time in the Word, and writing.  It has been refreshing!  I stumbled upon this article by C.J. Mahaney and I found it so helpful today: http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/Reference/Blog/cj-mahaney-biblical-productivity.pdf  He really hit on some concepts in my life where I struggle with sin and immaturity.  Here are a couple of things in the article that really stood out to me:

"...busyness does not mean I am diligent; busyness does not mean I am faithful; busyness does not mean I am fruitful."

"...it appears to me that being faithful, productive, and fruitful for the glory of God requires that I accomplish
three things: 1. define my present God‐given roles, 2. determine specific, theologically informed goals, and
3. transfer these goals into my schedule."
 
"For me, I work from two general categories that work well with most of my roles (especially my relationships with other people). Broadly speaking, my goals are twofold: • Serve (How can I serve others?)
• Surprise (How can I surprise others?)"
 
"busyness does not indicate that we are devoting ourselves to the most important things. We can become busy with everything under the sun except fulfilling the roles God has assigned for us. And no matter how busy I appear, if I am neglecting one of my primary roles, I am a procrastinator, spinning in unproductive circles."
 
"Each day, both requests and opportunities to serve exceed our capacity and our time. Saying 'no' is really a humble response acknowledging our limitations. But if we have not determined in advance who we are to serve, and how we are to serve, we will not be able to say 'no' when appropriate."
 
"...if the request is not consistent with my roles, I ask a further question: Can I complete this in less than two minutes? Sometimes small opportunities to bless others arise but do not fit into our specific roles. If that’s the case, go for it.” If not—if this is a large request that would require a block of time in my schedule and does
not fit into my roles—I must decide to delegate, decline, or delete the request (basic David Allen stuff)."

"Scripture calls us to cast all our anxieties on God, because he cares for us. 6 'Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all
uour anxieties on him, because he cares for you.' (1 Peter 5:6–7, ESV). Casting all my cares upon the Lord is a means of humbling myself before the Lord. In reading these passages we discover that casting our cares upon the Lord falls under the command to humble ourselves. Casting our cares is an expression of humility. When I fail to cast my cares upon him, I display prideful self‐sufficiency."

"I find the counsel of Charles Spurgeon very helpful. 'I always feel it well,' he wrote, 'to put a few words of prayer between everything I do.' Throughout his busy days, Spurgeon scattered words of prayer between each activity, a model I have sought to emulate over the years. The content of my 'few words of prayer' is not unique and if you overheard them, you wouldn’t be impressed. I am a simple man and when I think of casting all my cares it is a simple acknowledgement of my dependence upon God and my need of grace throughout the day. But the very act of pausing in a busy day to pray is an act of weakening pride in my life, acknowledging that I am a dependent creature. I am not self‐sufficient."

"At its root, weariness is often the result of pride and self‐sufficiency in my life. When I neglect casting my cares upon the Lord, the heavy fatigue of weariness will settle into my soul."

Wow, so much to ponder.  Feeling convicted and encouraged all at the same time.