Tired, But Content

I often hear and say these words... "Man, am I tired!"

You say them, too.

What does that actually mean? What does that say?

Clearly, on the surface, it is often the truth. Nothing wrong with that.

But what about the rest of the message it conveys? Probably not worth a blog entry, but you've tuned in so keep reading...Please.

First of all, "I'm tired!" says that you are at some level of your existance out of control. You do have the ability to go to bed at a reasonable hour, you can exert control over the number of hours you work, you can take a nap (even a shorty provides a refreshing jolt to the system). But we (you and I) stay up late to watch that "important" television, we make too many commitments at work or don't have the guts to say, "I'm sorry, I can't do that until next week," or we take our lunch hour and surf the net, chew the fat, and generally waste time.

Take control.

Secondly, "I'm tired!" makes others feel like they're not going to get you fullest attention -- to them, to them issues, to serving and ministering to them. When I respond to someone asking "how are you?" that "I'm exhausted!" I am being selfish and self-centered and not much of a conversationalist. When I turn that around and give and honest answer like "WOW, I'm really running all cylinders right now, but very content. How about you?" I enable a conversation, a continuation, an edification, a ministry opportunity.

Be content.

By admitting "fullness of schedule," I enable discussion about how someone else's needs can fit into my world. By turning the timbre of my response toward the idea of contentedness, I am saying that things in my little corner of the world are ordered well, efficient, effective, amazing, etc. By asking "the asker" how they are doing, I enable them to pick up the positive vibe and respond in kind. I also turn the attention from me to them, I say by that very action that "You are important to me -- Tell me about your day."

It is an interesting exercise to respond in the opposite spirit to all negative input. Difusing, disarming, swapping positive for negative.

Tired? Yep! Content? Absolutely. It's not about me, it's all about Him.

(BTW, if you can't honestly answer that you are content, then it's time to change the way you are living.)

So I Was Thinking...

...where does the time go. Almost two months since my last post.

I am so busy and frankly rather double-minded. I recognize that being single-minded would be saner, but it's rather hard to just shut down the opportunities, the requests, the "stuff."

(here's one of my distractions... www.dasfreithaus.com)

I have made the decision to set aside as many extracurricular activities in the month of November as I possibly can. Focus on family, on my home life, on being more quiet, reflective, prayerful, peaceful.

It's a noble endeavor.

I'll keep you posted.