Get more done
Maybe you’ve decided to read this article because you’re busy, and the title suggests it might help you get more done. So let’s get right to the point: You can’t. What? That’s right, you can’t. Here’s something I’ve learned. As long as it is you against the clock, you versus the deadline, you will eventually stumble. The rules will change, the tasks won’t match up to the resources, or you will need to go to the hardware store one more time and find that it is closed. OK, maybe not every time, but often! Why does this feel like a losing battle? Because it is you, personally, who believes you have entered a hectic rat race. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Do you want to be really brave? It’s OK to “let go of the reins,” to listen and let God reveal to you what needs to be done. You will accomplish more and succeed as you understand that you reflect God’s infinitely superior “skill set.” Mary Baker Eddy writes in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: “The understanding that Life is God, Spirit, lengthens our days by strengthening our trust in the deathless reality of Life, its almightiness and immortality” (p. 487). I used to think that meant if I could only understand I lived through God, I would live longer, but if you read the sentence carefully it says “the understanding that Life is God” will “lengthen our days.” To me that says you’ll get more done in a lengthened day, and have the opportunity to enjoy the process. It might seem as though God’s giving you bonus time, but really you’re just experiencing more eternity and less time. As Mrs. Eddy says: “Eternity, not time, expresses the thought of Life, and time is no part of eternity. One ceases in proportion as the other is recognized. Time is finite; eternity is forever infinite” (Science and Health, pp. 468–469).
Students: Get
JSH-Online for
$5/mo
Every recent & archive issue
Podcasts & article audio
Mary Baker Eddy bios & audio
Every recent & archive issue
Podcasts & article audio
Mary Baker Eddy bios & audio
It’s OK to let God reveal to you what needs to be done.
I have relied on this higher view of my life numerous times in the last year since I reread the “lengthens our days” quote in this more literal sense. Practically speaking, it has resulted in my making some interesting changes in my routine and outlook. I have stopped counting the hours I sleep every night, no longer plan in excessive detail the tasks I have left to do, and have tried to minimize the time I spend wondering if I have enough time. I am getting more done on a regular basis. After praying about it, I have even taken on and successfully completed some big projects, which I really didn’t have time to do, before God started “lengthening my days.”
You are just shining through God’s “borrowed light” (see Mary Baker Eddy, Retrospection and Introspection, p. 57) as you accomplish what is set before you. So when you’re tempted to think you won’t get what is needed done on time, try recognizing you are living to reflect God and be ready to accept His plan for your day. Sure, you’ll still have to work hard and wisely, but you’ll recognize you’re not doing it alone. God has what it takes to help us check off the tasks which belong on our list and to lead us to remove those that do not.
You will feel God’s presence with you, and find that an understanding of your connection with God helps with the heavy lifting. You will make better decisions about what needs to be accomplished and waste less effort. Recognizing our life as being in and with God allows us to “walk in the light of the Lord” (Isaiah 2:5). What a great description! It advises us to walk purposefully, not run in a panic or stand passively by, as we travel our path illuminated by the warm light of God. There is no way to stumble or take a false turn in such a perfect light as we meet our respective daily challenges.
Ready to put this into practice? Then we should both probably get back to work.