Remembering Rest #3 and pj4life #2: Observing Yourself: An Inventory

In this blog post, I want us to take stock about our present state of being. Let’s answer the question in a very deep way regarding, ‘How are you?’

 

Take out your prayer journal and journal your answers to every question listed in this blog post. Make sure to be thorough and to take your time. In fact, you may want to repeat this exercise every day for the next three days, again in another week, and again in a month. You will get the most thorough answers that way and you’ll have something to measure your future state of being with. This will be your starting point. There are no wrong answers here. Just be honest and write more than you think is necessary.

 

Are you tired?

Do you feel exhausted? Can you think straight? Or are you so worn out that you wish you could take a week for yourself and do nothing?

I don’t know about you, but I think this is an epidemic of society. We are too busy for our own good and are barely functioning.

 

When was the last time you took a day of rest in a week?

So, when was your last Sabbath (day of rest)?

When was the last time you had 2 Sabbaths in a row? 3 in a row? 4?

 

When was your last vacation?

When was your last 5+ day vacation? How long was it and what did you do?

Do you take this amount of time off at least three times a year? Why or why not?

 

Evening rest

Do you ever get a chance to rest for a couple of hours after work?

 

Spiritual Retreat

When was the last time you ran away and spent alone time with God for 2 days in a row? 3? 4? 5? 7+?

 

Sabbath Rest, Vacation, Evening Rest, Spiritual Retreat

Take out your planner and calendar for a year from now. Block out each of these increments on that calendar. That way, you can’t say that you didn’t have enough time to plan to do so. You have it scheduled a year out and blocked out so that nothing can get in the way of that time.

 

Here’s what to block out (these are all minimums) on your planner/schedule:

~ A day of rest every week

~ A two-day spiritual retreat every 3 months

~ A 3-day spiritual retreat once a year

~ A week’s vacation three times a year to play

~ A 5-day spiritual retreat once a year

 

How can you implement any of these soon?

So, how can you start to adjust your schedule to accommodate each of these immediately—or fairly soon?

~ For the weekly Sabbath, start with one hour a week (or 30 minutes) and increase it by that increment every week until you have 24 hours per week planned for time with God.

~ Start with a half day spiritual retreat every 3 months and increase it by half a day until you have 2 days every 3 months.

~ Plan a week off from work for vacation and play in 6 months

~ Any other ideas you can come up with

 

Journal Your Thoughts

Journal your thoughts of everything we’ve looked at today.

 

~ Stacy Duplease

Remembering Your Present, LLC and pj4life (Prayer Journaling for Life)

Author of Biblical Fiction, Bible Studies, and Devotionals

 

Email: Pj4life1@gmail.com