Let's Juggle!

I've always wanted to learn how to juggle....until the juggling instructor in the community heard it was a dream of mine and literally stalked me!  Now I just have juggling balls waiting to be used...someday.

Well, at Education Week I had the opporunity of listening to Brad Wilcox and his presentation about Juggling our Many Responsibilities  (doesn't the title already sound like something you need?).

This was what I learned (in a very paraphrased nutshell).


childrensbooksguide.com
Wilcox used this book in his presentation.  So good!



Whenever we start to feel overwhelmed with our many responsibilities, the first thing we think about is:  SIMPLIFY.  Cut things out.  Get rid of stuff and activities. Right?  Well, even if you simplify down to the bare minimum, you still may feel a bit pulled on every side.  Maybe then it's time to cut out church, or the six kids you've chosen to have.  That just doesn't make any sense!

So the next thing you try to do is PRIORITIZE.  Okay, well, the Church has already basically given us the order:  Family, Church, Work.  And still most of the time we feel guilty that we're putting too much time in backwards order. 

Finally, you try to BALANCE all of your many responsibilities.  If you just put everything all in compartmentalized places in your life, you'll be good!  Well, suddenly when a child gets sick, or a new responsibility pops up in church, or there's a sudden deadline at work you are immediately unbalanced again.  So that doesn't seem to work either.

With all of these trial and error methods of fulfilling our responsibilities without going crazy we find ourselves feeling guilty or stressed much of the time.  We begin to ask ourselves, "What's the point anyway?" 



longleanmama.com



Brother Wilcox's advice was that we start looking at it like JUGGLING.  When you juggle you may have a red ball (child 1), a green ball (child 2), an orange ball (husband), a yellow ball (work), a blue ball (housework), etc...  And while you're juggling them all, one or two may drop while you take care of those other balls that may be more important at the time.  The balls are still there, on the ground, waiting to be picked up when necessary, but there really isn't a way to juggle all of the balls all of the time.  Nor does the Lord want us to "fun faster than is needful." 
The story is told of Christ on his way to heal the daughter of Jairus.  The crowds were thronged about him and he felt pulled in many directions.  During his journey to that purpose, His hem was touched by a woman with the issue of blood.  In his rush to the home of Jairus, He took the time to pause and say to the woman, "Thy faith hath made thee whole." 



lds.org

Let us follow His example.  As we are going about our busy lives, pulled in every direction and meeting demands and needs of others, we can take the time to pause and take care of the one thing that might be needful.  If we are in tune with the whisperings of the Spirit, we will know when to continue on our path and when to stop to take care of a more important need.  Then when the balls drop, as they inevitably will, we won't feel that guilt that we are neglecting things in our lives.  Rather, we will feel the confidence that we are on the Lord's errand, doing His bidding and prioritizing for Him.  As we place our actions at His feet we will feel Him say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."