If you haven’t as yet, I invite you to read my previous blog post – Planning in the Christian Life Part 1. 

If we recognize that we have over committed, planning may give us time to rearrange schedules, so that we can reduce our stress. 

Also if we have to say no to requests, we can provide people with adequate notice.  

Fortunately, planning gives us the opportunity to look at things in advance, so that we can utilize our time and resources in more effective ways; we don’t just move from one activity to another in a random way. 

As we organize we plan our activities across a period of time.  We live benefiting from what was done in the past.  We can live in and enjoy the experiences of the present and yet plan for the future.  Planning helps to reduce stresses experienced from making last minute decisions.

We can seek to live a continuous and harmonious life.  Balance and harmony occur over a period of time; and involves what is done today, what was done yesterday and what will be done or planned for tomorrow. 

We benefit from:

• decisions made in advance;
• skills acquired in the past;
• the things that we would have done before; and
• adopting a proactive approach to living

We then start to identify and know what is most important at any given time.  Planning also provides grace for the overachiever.  We are reminded that – we can’t do it all, and that we are not expected to do it all either.

The next time you feel like you have to try to do a lot all at once, remember that God provided us with the perfect example as explained in Part 1.  He organized the creation of the earth over a period of days.   

So as planning becomes a part of our lives, we would learn:

• How and when it is time to revisit priorities.
• How to assess when too much is too much, since things generally take longer than we think they would. 
• To understand our thresholds.
• To identify warning signs and put measures in place to avoid burnout and overwhelm.
• To identify special projects to complete to make future activities easier to manage.
•  What to leave to complete in the future, and when to put activities on hold.

God has placed a high value on our lives.

Isn’t it liberating to catch a glimpse of what God has in store for us?  To catch a glimpse of what life can be like when we intentionally make proactive decisions?  Well that is something to be thankful for. Don’t you agree?

Because God is leading us, we can be sure that He is giving us the wisdom and the vision to make wise and informed decisions, and the mental fortitude to follow through even in tough times.

We at times may feel that we are doing things on our own and have to make decisions alone.  But it is liberating to know that God has given us wisdom to ask for help of others when needed.

As we make decisions with God’s guidance, we can also be thankful to God for providing us with the resources we need.

With planning, we seek to organize the different aspects and facets of our lives, including taking care of ourselves; so that we can feel energized.

Remember that as you plan, you are not alone.  The Holy Spirit is there to guide into all truth; to show you what is best for you.

And at the end of the day we would be able to reflect on the day and feel thankful about how we have utilized the precious gift of time that the Lord has given to us.

Be Blessed.