Surprise! I’m On Time!

Well, it’s the fifth weekday (Thursday) and I’ve posted and published on time!
How did I do it?
Maybe I got up extra early with a burst of energy?
Nope.
I was inspired and whipped up the post in no time at all?
Nuh-huh.

I planned it ahead of time.
At time of writing, it’s Wednesday morning.
Of course, I already know what I want to talk about, so that helps.

My fellow DOL team member and editor of ALITD magazine, Vanessa, coined a word for me to remember while we were preparing for my wedding.

Underwhelmed.

Usually, life is overwhelming.
I am overwhelmed with everything I seem to easily commit to.
Underwhelm is the opposite.
It’s non-stressful.
It’s peaceful, relaxing, easy going, and flexible.

I’ve been telling myself that I’m underwhelmed with everything I’ve got to do before October ends.
So far, my list looks something like this:

• Manage the thrift store 6 days a week.
• Sunday evening, be available in case theater needs help with closing.
• Monday morning, pack up parts of the house and load the truck (we’ll be moving at the end of the month).
• Tuesday morning, help with cafe opening protocol until 9:30 am and then go open the thrift store. Sort winter clothing to put on the racks. Serve customers. Operate cash register. Go home around 3 pm to work on magazine parts. Host DOL core team call for Sukkot (once a month) at 6 pm. Take care of household responsibilities.
• Wednesday morning, help with cafe opening protocol until 8:30 am and then go open the thrift store. Sort winter clothing to put on the racks. Serve customers. Operate cash register. Go home around 3 pm to work on magazine parts. Host DOL core team call for A Light In The Darkness (ALITD) magazine at 6 pm. Take care of household responsibilities.
• Thursday morning, help with cafe opening protocol until 8:00 am and then take care of thrift store responsibilities, restock cooler/freezer items. Open the thrift store. Sort winter clothing to put on the racks. Serve customers. Operate cash register. Go visit an elderly friend at 3:15 to 5:15 pm. Return to the store and help close. Work on Sabbath prep. Take care of household responsibilities.
• Friday morning, pack up parts of the house and set in bedroom for next week. Open the thrift store. Sort winter clothing to put on the racks. Serve customers. Operate cash register. Go home around 2 pm to work on Sabbath Prep. Thrift store closes at 4:30pm. Be ready by 5:00pm to head to my sister’s (and brother-in-law’s) house for Erev Shabbat…

Of course, that’s not including little pockets of free time and time set aside for ministry calls/conversations. To me, it looks like a productive week and I don’t feel overloaded, either. How come?

Well, I’ve added a very important exercise in my early morning/or during the night when I can’t get back to sleep routine. I spend time telling Yahweh about all the things I’ve got to get done and how can I do it when I feel so tired at the end of the day? Sometimes I gripe and complain about challenges, hurdles, but in the end, I praise Him for giving me the answer, even if I don’t totally get it right away.

In the first few moments of awakening each morning, the Spirit of Yah (Ruwach haKodesh) outlines to me what is most important to get done on that particular day. It’s something small and simple, but every step gets me closer to completing my to-do list. Some things only take minutes, other a few hours, but it gets done. Plus, what’s more amazing to me is that I would never have thought about doing it this way. Praise Yah! He’s Yah-mazing! Yah-some! Yah-tastic!

Spending time with Him every day has really gotten me through the rough times. I’m not dedicating hours specifically to sit and read, sing, and pray. I just don’t have that kind of time, but I do have moments and minutes where I can pull away and talk with Him. I have also cultivated my relationship with Yahshua, to the point of imagining him going everywhere I go (except the bathroom, of course!). At first, it took a lot of deliberate imagining and concentration, but it’s second-nature now. Besides, he knows everything about me anyways. It’s nice to know that he loves me despite that!

When the thrift store is quiet or I have a few seconds alone, I take those seconds to praise Yahweh and thank Him for the small successes I just experienced. Sometimes, I roll my eyes and ask Him what I’m supposed to learn from a recent conflict so that I can move on. Other times, I offer thanks for blessing me with health and faculties (available limbs and movement) to accomplish my responsibilities every day. Only a few seconds, but those seconds add up.

If you want to see a difference in your own life, I strongly advise you to start cultivating a personal relationship with Yahweh the Father and Yahshua the Son. Spending those precious few moments with praise, thanksgiving, gratefulness, prayers instead of on worry, fears, apprehensions, stressful situations. You too may notice how underwhelmed you are beginning to feel in spite of the overwhelming circumstances around you.