Hello, my most excellent friends!
May I preface this post by saying that everything I’m going to write in the next several minutes is also a reminder directly to myself. I’m about to address one of my biggest challenges in life; and believe me, solving this problem does not get easier the older one becomes. Not to be depressing or anything ;)
May I preface this post by saying that everything I’m going to write in the next several minutes is also a reminder directly to myself. I’m about to address one of my biggest challenges in life; and believe me, solving this problem does not get easier the older one becomes. Not to be depressing or anything ;)
I want to talk to you today about the importance of having margin in your life. To me, having margin means having free, unscheduled, open time that is dedicated solely to relaxing, meditating, strolling along a hiking trail, napping, baking….the list goes on. Too many times we are involved in so many activities that we only focus on running from one thing to the next to the next. Ladies, this is detrimental in so many ways! If we don’t have margin, it’s nearly impossible to execute the activities we DO participate in with excellence, because we are too over-scheduled to devote our full attention to the task at hand.
I remember one time in high school; it was about 11 p.m., meaning I was emotionally unstable to begin with (I like my sleep!). I was sobbing to my Dad about this Chemistry test that I had the next day, along with rehearsal for the latest theatre production, a meeting for Student Government, and a voice recital I had coming up. I was totally overwhelmed, impatient, irritable, and just generally freaking out. After I had thoroughly soaked my poor Daddy’s t-shirt with my tears, he gently reminded me that I was going to have to start thinking about my commitments and begin planning ahead to build margin into my schedule. His point was, unless you intentionally plan for time with no plans, it won’t happen. He is so right!
Building margin into our lives is essential to our productivity, happiness, success, and well-being. I’d encourage you to find time at least once a week to spend a few hours doing something quiet and alone; it’s so calming and healthy to have a chance to reflect. I personally like getting up a little early on Saturday mornings, spending time journaling, reading my Bible, and praying; it allows me to be rejuvenated and take on the day. Embrace peace! My words to you end today with what Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians 3:16, “Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.”
Much love,
Kinsey
Kinsey Crow is a college freshman at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama majoring in Nursing. Originally from Mount Vernon, Ohio, Kinsey was a participant in the Distinguished Young Women program and was selected as the Distinguished Young Woman of Ohio for 2011. Learn more about Kinsey here!
