Thinking Things

               

          I have been alone a lot lately. Partly because my car is no longer and partly because it is my "slow season." And it is making me think. When you are alone in your apartment, you have plenty of time. And how you choose to fill that time can tell a lot about you. Now, don't go jumping to conclusions about what this blog post is gonna say, I'm not going to make you feel all down on yourself for watching Netflix and cruising Facebook... we've all done it. But the thoughts and mindset that you enter into when you are left to your own devices tells a lot about where you've been and where you are going. 

          So I challenge you to think about what you are thinking about when you are alone. Is it propelling you into the future you that you want to be? Maybe you don't know who the future you is... that's ok! I just want to challenge you to take a second and think!

Invest in Relationships

     Another question that was asked of me recently went something like this: "How do you invest in the relationships in your life?" In my mind, I instantly responded, "Nope. I'm single. No relationship for me to invest in." But then I pushed back that insecure part of me and started thinking about all of the relationships that are present in my life. 

     My relationships with my mom, dad, grama, and sisters. My relationship with my nieces. My relationships with my students. My relationships with my friends who live locally. My relationships with my friends who live farther away. My relationships with my co-workers who get to see my when I am most stressed :/ My relationships with the people in my small group Bible study. All of these people, in all aspects of my life. 

      What would our lives be without other people? (all of the introverts are saying things such as "peaceful" and "lovely") But seriously, we are all interdependent in some way or another so without those people, what would your life look like? So then my follow-up question is this, what are you doing to devote yourself to those people? 

     As I sit here and type this, I am asking myself all the same questions. Yes, it is easier for me to sit here in my apartment and cruise Pinterest while watching Netflix, but wouldn't writing a letter to a friend from camp (while watching Netflix) be a better way to devote myself to others? A better way to invest in the people around me?

     This post isn't really an "upper". It's a little convicting (at least for me) and a bit hard to digest. So, maybe as a way to turn things around, grab a pen and paper, or open up a new text message, and thank those who have been investing in you recently.  Because they are the people who make all the difference in this thing called life.

Time to Invest

     I don't want this to be a post that leaves you feeling lousy about yourself and leads you to go and eat a tub of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, I only want it to get you thinking for a moment. You see, someone posed this question to me about a month ago and it has been swirling around in my mind every since, "What do you invest your time in?" And then, they challenged me to make a list of things that I spend the most time on. Looking back at the list, there are some things that I would like to change (like the amount of time watching "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"), but there are some things that I am really proud of (such as teaching children to read and be kind to each other). 

     I don't think that I need to completely eliminate the "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" times, but I do think that I need to be more conscious of my time. I'm not suggesting that you need to overbook yourself because you feel you need to choose more wisely, nor am I asking you to defend the way that you currently spend your time. I just want you to consider. Maybe take one hour a week and invest it in something that means a lot to you. Maybe to you that means volunteering at a local animal shelter, or writing letters to friends who are having a hard time. Maybe that means calling your mom or grandma at 7:00pm every Tuesday or texting your little sister as she goes in to take an exam. 

     Either way, take a moment, reflect on where you are investing your time. Is it where you would like it to be invested?