During the eighties, time management became very popular in the business world. I purchased the latest organizers with a to-do list and put them to good use every day. I developed my daily, weekly, and monthly schedule to make sure all my projects meet their deadlines and that I never missed an important meeting. At the end of each day, I reviewed my progress and found satisfaction in crossing off or checking off my completed tasks.
Even in retirement, I still use a to-do list to keep me on track with writing deadlines or other major activities. And I still love the feeling that comes from completing a task and marking it as finished. At a recent writer’s conference, a friend mentioned how sometimes we get trapped into the doing the simple things first so we can check them off instead of putting in the effort to complete the more hard tasks. Guilty as charged. Sometimes, I worked to clear the most items from the list instead of those of greatest value to the work.
Biblical To-Do List
What can we learn about to-do lists from the Bible? And does this to-do list mentality carry over into our faith life? God gave Moses a specific to-do list for building the tabernacle in Exodus 26 and Jesus gave the disciples a detailed to-do list when He sent them out in pairs in Matthew 10:5-14. So, nothing is wrong with planning out and using such lists. Do you have a godly list or do you just use them for your career and personal life?
Godly To-Do List
What are some items we might put on a godly list? Here’s one example:
- Read the Bible daily.
- Pray daily.
- Go to church.
- Love others, even the difficult people.
- Share the Gospel with others.
These are all good things to have on a to-do. But they’re only beneficial when we see them as a way to deepen our relationship with God. So, we need to be careful that they don’t become only a checklist to complete. And, do we still pick the easier things to do first so we can check more off our Godly to-do list? Let’s dig further.
Hard to Complete
It’s easy for most of us to do the first three items on the above list and feel like we are acting like Christ. But God calls us to more than just the simple parts of our faith. Jesus calls all of us to love others and to share the Gospel, but we shy away from these because we believe they are too difficult and make us uncomfortable. We will never reach a time when we can separate ourselves from God because we checked off everything on our spiritual to-do list, but that does not mean we quit trying to do all the things God calls us to do.
A New To-do Way of Life
With faith, we need to set the to-do list based on God’s plans for us. We need to put God first in everything we do and pray for His direction daily. Instead of a list that we check off, we might add items like:
- Find joy in Christ.
- Don’t judge others.
- Offer love to all those we meet.
- Encourage others.
- Let our faith shine before others.
By living a faith-filled life instead of a to-do faith, we will inspire others and make an impact in the world—and confidence will flow out of that faith.
Grace and Peace to you,
Yvonne M. Morgan is a Christian #author, #blogger, and #speaker. #BibleGatewayPartner
Matthew 28:19 “Therefore, GO and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
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Amen. Living a faith filled life brings opportunities to share His message with others. Have a blessed day! 🙂
Thanks for visiting Melissa. Blessings on your day too.
“A faith filled life instead of a to-do list.” Your message is speaking to me, Yvonne. I also thrive on completing items on a to-do list. It makes me feel as if I’m accomplishing worthwhile endeavers. However, you’ve led me to examine my motives and I don’t really like what I’ve discovered. Thank you for guiding me to reflect and make some much needed changes.
Thanks Katherine. I was speaking to myself too. It so easy to get bogged down in the list instead of what are God’s best plans for us. Blessings
I love this message, Yvonne! It’s true, we easily get trapped into doing the little things that are “check-able”. Then we miss the big things that are not easily measured, like finding joy in Christ. May God keep our hearts focused on faith-filled actions that come from His heart and enlarge ours for Him. God bless!
So very true Melissa. We need to make sure to do the big things. Thanks for commenting and blessings
I’m so bad, I have “Make next week’s To Do list” on my To Do list. LOL I certainly understand your guide to reprioritization of our faith life. Sometimes, I find it moves down my list of things to do for the day. What that tells me is that I need to get up earlier so that I never move my “God time” from its permanent Number One place on every To Do list. Not sure about you my friend, but I have a Writing To Do list, a Home To Do list, an Appointment list (for everyone), a Ranch To Do list, and a Long-Term To Do list that includes those major projects that will require time and planning. Of course, my lists also conflict and get derailed by emergencies and “last minutes.” Love your prioritization dear friend. Having met you this year at BRMCWC, you are a model to emulate my kind and encouraging friend.
Thank you my friend. I keep several list too. My writing list, my charity to do, and household to do. These often distract me from the main purpose of life. I’m trying (and failing). But we keep going in His purpose and grace. So important for all of us to share our burdens so they become lighter. Blessings my friend. 💗
Thank you, Yvonne, for reminding us of the importance of biblical practices. They don’t require a rigid, restrictive checklist, but they should be high on our priority list. Sometimes it helps to write down reminders for those we struggle to fulfill. Your post will help me leave space on my daily agenda for what’s most important.
Thank you Jeannie. And we need to make sure we do the hard things for Christ, not just the easy items. Blessings
Excellent points and application, Yvonne. Thank you for reminding us of our priorities.
Thank you Annie. Blessings
I’m someone who relies on to-do lists to keep me focused.. but I’ve learned that it’s ALWAYS good to set my list aside and do what God wants when that Holy Spirit nudge comes!! I love the idea of a godly to-do list. 🙂
Thanks for commenting Jessica. We do need to leave room for the Holy Spirit to move us. Blessings
Great insight here, Yvonne. I’ve often thought spiritual to-do lists can become religious and ritual, liken to the pharisees. And they can I suppose, when we just check items off just for the sake of checking them off and we really didn’t get much out of reading God’s Word or praying. It’s all about perspective and I love how you went on to give us a new way of life to-do list. That’s the heart of the gospel and our faith.
Thank you for visiting Karen. You are correct about not make the list a ritual. It is a balancing act. Blessings
This article made me think. I’ve been a list person for a long time but had not thought about having an actual spiritual list. That may be the next step for my writing (books and blog) since my aim is to help people grow in faith. Thanks, Yvonne!
Very welcome Keon. I think it is an important thing to do. Blessings