The Rhythm of Life

We are all looking for balance in our life. These are some of the things I hear people say:

• I am always to busy.
• I am stressed out.
• I don't have enough hours in the day.
• I feel like I am running in circles all day long.
• I never get enough sleep.
• I work in my sleep.   

I think I have said all the above at one time or another in my life until I read a wonderful book titled Rhythm of Life by Richard Exley. He said we need to find balance in our life in four areas:

• Work
• Worship
• Rest
• Play

In the forward, he says this book is for you if...

1. You find yourself trapped in a lifestyle crowded with activity, caught in the process of living --- but too busy to live.

2. The tedium of daily events, overbooked schedules, and routine activities demand your dreams give way to the never-ending flow of immediate needs.

3. You've achieved success but the sense of fulfillment continues to elude you.

4. You don't have time to redefine your purpose and direction in life.   
  
As I read the book I began to desire more rest and play and not so much of a work mentality. It was a process to begin to set aside some time to rest and play and do something that would bring more balance to my life.

Work - I didn't have a problem working as I am a type-A personality. I always had my to-do list and followed it faithfully. I had goals and even did time studies on myself.

Worship - Daily devotional has been part of my life since I received the Lord  40+ years ago. As a staff pastor, I  attended several church services and events each week. I often would journal where I was spiritually and many times had to remind myself that I needed to stay spiritually full to be able to help others.

Rest - When it came to rest I was often someone who did work in my sleep. I also had more things on my to-do list that could possibly be accomplished in a 24 hour period. When I sat down to watch a TV show my mind would mentally think about all I had to do. I have come a long way in that area, where I can now enter into rest.

Play - When it came to playing that was a foreign word to me. I grew up being the eldest of four children. My mom was ill most of the time after my two younger siblings were born. I became the substitute mother for them at 8 years old. I didn't have a normal childhood and didn't go out and play after school. So playing or we might say relaxing, having a hobby, going to a movie, etc was not something I did very well. When we had grandchildren I began to chill more. I enjoyed their carefree ways and would find myself being caught up in playtime with them and not thinking about other things I needed to do. I started doing some hobbies that I enjoyed, crocheting, count cross stitch, scrapbooking and reading.


I finally learned to put this scripture into practice - Proverbs 14:30 (TLB)  "A relaxed attitude will lengthen your 
life."