Almost 41 years ago, I left home and family and moved to Pensacola, Florida. I loved the 135-year old house where I lived. I was leaving a great job and moving was hard. I just couldn’t get packed.

A week or so before the move, Mom stopped by to visit and immediately understood my dilemma. In each room stood several open boxes, all in various stages of being packed. Scattered around the boxes was “stuff.” She could tell that I was overwhelmed.

In a sweet and understanding way, she offered to help. Although I was in that awkward young adult period of thinking that accepting help demonstrated some form of personal weakness, I quickly accepted her offer.

She started in a corner of a room and then she worked, expanding her work area in the shape of a fan. She just packed the stuff. She didn’t sort or organize – she packed. And like a horde of locusts attacking a ripe field, nothing was left behind her.

If you find yourself with too many tasks, too many taskmasters, and too little time this month, I have some advice for you: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10a)

Need more?

1. Find the most important task.

2. Do it!

3. Find the next important task.

4. Do it!

5. Find the next important task.

6. Do it!

Need me to write more steps?

As I look around our home there are:

⁃ Ingredients ready to be used in baking Christmas goodies

– Cards to address and mail

– Presents to wrap

– A list of presents and cards to buy

⁃ Outdoor lights that have not been put up

⁃ So many other projects.

And on my desk are:

⁃ A book that needs a final polish

⁃ A paper that needs to be written

– Emails that need to be drafted and sent

⁃ A sermon that still needs work

– An in-box that needs to be cleaned out

– So many other projects

I could make lists for my dresser, my closet, the craft room, the kitchen…please, don’t ask for those.

I’ll bet you have many of the same challenges. Let’s do the most important thing first. This Christmas season, after I have spent time in the word and in prayer with John, my first priority will be to send a note or email or make a call to someone to say that I love and appreciate them. These are not “thank you for x, y, z” calls but “thank you for being you” calls.

Then, I am planning to take on and finish one task at a time. As the scripture directs: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10a) That may mean that some of the Christmas baked goodies do not make it into the oven until January.

“New Year Goodies” – what a fantastic idea!!

Love,

Jill (just one of God’s kids)

Ps. It is time for both of us to get back to work!! 😄