Overwhelmed

This morning when I woke up, I thought about all the things that had to be done today, and how the timing for each individual event or activity would work out. At first it didn’t seem that tight as far as time. I got home from Seminary and started into my schedule and suddenly everything seemed to be piling up. Have you ever had days when it seems like you have too much to do and not enough time to do it in? That’s how I started to feel this morning, and I felt a bit overwhelmed by it all.

I got my kids registered for a summer Church activity, which took way longer than I thought it was going to, and then knew my next step was exercise. As I was exercising, it felt like it was taking forever, and I kept thinking about all the stuff that still had to be accomplished. Then I jumped in the shower. It was in the shower that I started to pray and think. That’s a good place to get answers I have found. As I stood there thinking, the thought that came to mind was, “you don’t have to do it all at once, just focus on one thing at a time and it’ll all work out.” Wow, what an answer to a prayer and what a feeling of calm and peace.

I often forget that I don’t have to multitask my life away. I can settle in and do one thing at a time, do it well because I am now focused, and then move on to the next task. A huge key to this is prioritizing. I have found that it helps to put things in order of priority. That list can change during the day, but when I get my priorities right, the stuff that’s most important gets done first, and often I find that some of the other stuff, that wasn’t as important, doesn’t need to be done, either at that time, or ever.

That inspiration this morning was the motivation I needed to jump into my day with the right attitude. I was able to focus on each of my morning tasks whole heartedly and complete each one with focus and attention to detail, rather than worry about the upcoming tasks. I am grateful for that inspiration from, I believe, my Heavenly Father, who is in the details of each of our lives if we allow Him to be. I am also grateful that the peace and calm that came with the answer has permeated my day. Because of the adjustment to my attitude and outlook, rather than having a heavy heart and frustration with things around me, I have been able to have joy in the completion of each task and have been able to move on to the next excited for each opportunity this day has brought.

It is easy to feel like life is piling up and to be overwhelmed with any prospect, even good ones sometimes. But as we take our lists, prioritize them, and focus on just one task at a time, we can have peace, we can have fun and enjoy the journey, and we can get the things done in our lives that are most important. I encourage you to prioritize and then just do one thing at a time today. Enjoy the journey.