Do You Have a Spiritual Spotter?

 

Hello.  My name is Deborah, and I am an ACHIEVER.

 

I. Struggle. With. Rest!

 

For years I beat myself up thinking all these ACHIEVER qualities I possess were flaws.  Lately, however, I have come to better understand that being an achiever isn’t totally a bad thing.  Others have helped me to see that there are some really good things about being an achiever, and that it was God who chose to wire me that way.

This has been my battle:

Consider that as an ACHIEVER, I am prone to work very hard to complete the tasks on each day’s “to do” list (Yes, there is a list.  Sometimes multiple lists!), and the lists are usually quite long.  Being an achiever means, I also gravitate toward being busy and productive.  Filled with a great deal of stamina and determination to achieve my goals, I derive great satisfaction from my accomplishments.  I like to work, and I like to work hard.

If you are not an achiever, lists are probably not your problem.  But I’m fairly certain you deal with something equal to my “lists.”

Lists are a major problem in my battle.  When my focus is on my “list” or the project I am currently working on, I can easily let these things take ultimate priority.

I forget among other things to rest.

 

Rest

Rest?  Is it really all that important?

YES!

God values rest.

He wove rest into Creation.  He knit it into Israel’s rhythm of life through the feasts and festivals of their calendar, and Jesus modeled it beautifully for us while He walked upon the earth.

This gift was not just for the people of Bible times.  God’s gift of rest is ready for my taking (Hebrews 4:9-11).  It’s ready for our taking!

In that same passage, I learn more about God’s rest.  He invites me to ”strive to enter that rest” (Hebrews 4:11a).  The gift is there for me.  But I must strive, work, make every effort to receive it (enter that rest).

I must put in the work to push past my built-in need to accomplish and to spend some time in rest.

One way I can do that is to invite Spiritual Spotters into my life.

 

Spiritual Spotters

I tend to “choose” busyness over rest (my list).  Whether, it’s a decision influenced by our culture or my God-wiring, I am the one who “chooses.”

But I NEED His gift of rest.

What is it that you “choose?”

       Time with friends?  Facebook?  Television?  Reading the latest novel?  Uncertainty?  Unbelief?  Self-pity?…

We all have “things” we wrestle with.  Things that vie for our time and attention.  Things we often succumb to when left to our own.

We NEED others!

Spiritual Spotters, if you will.

• People we have invited into our lives to “spot us,” – to ask us questions and keep us on track.
• I need those who will ask me if I am taking time to rest and who are not afraid to ask for specifics (date, amount of time, how I spent that time).
• People who will remind me that my list is merely the means of achieving my goals, not my goal and who might help guide me to placing rest (or relationships or quiet time) on my “to-do” list.
• Soul friends who will help keep me focused on developing my relationship with God and remembering that knowing Him is the fundamental aim of my life (John 17:3).

What about you?

What do you need a Spiritual Spotter to bring to your life?

Who might that person(s) be?

If you don’t have at least one Spiritual Spotter, I encourage you to think about it, pray about it, and then take the step.  Begin 2018 by inviting someone into your life to be your Spiritual Spotter.