As a kid, I used to love the show Green Acres. If you’re too young to remember, it was about a New York City attorney and his wife who attempt to live as genteel farmers in the bizarre community of Hooterville. That show started my love for fixing up old houses. I would see that run down old farmhouse and decorate it in my mind during every episode. But week after week, that old wreck of a house would stay pretty much the same. Construction workers, brother and sister Ralph and Alf, would be forever working on projects, but never getting anything done.
Some days my house seemed like that old farmhouse. After years of buying and renovating houses, there comes a time when you just want to be done! Even if you are not actually finished with the project, there may be a tendency to slack off a bit and accept the undone state of things as good enough for now.
My first two houses were transformed from ugly to beautiful very quickly because I was young and had lots of energy, and I knew that I wanted to sell them and move on. But once I purchased the third house, which I believed would be my forever home, I slowed down a bit. There was no longer that motivating factor to get things done quickly, so after the initial work was done to get plumbing, electrical and heating systems functioning, my pace became considerably more relaxed.
Children, and all that goes along with them, pushed projects to the back burner, where they would sit and simmer for years. Severe health issues took precedence, and some of the grand plans got tucked away for some future time.
Then, suddenly after a divorce, I realized that the house was in such a poor state that I couldn’t even sell it. There were so many unfinished projects that any potential buyers would be scared off. So with the motivation to sell, I got busy working on all the things I had been ignoring for years. I had gotten so used to things being half done, that I needed to view things from an honest and critical perspective. And after months of hard work, the house was up to the standard it needed to be in order to sell it at a sizable profit.
In the years that followed, I bought two more houses and did quick make-overs on both. I then purchased my current home, another old farmhouse, which I have been happily renovating for the past fifteen years. There are still some unfinished projects, but since I’m not planning on going anywhere soon, they can wait. I no longer have the abundance of energy I once had, so I have to be more discerning in where that limited energy is spent.
I read an article which described unfinished business as open loops. It said that open loops are all the unfinished business that your mind keeps coming back to over and over again. Open loops distract you from the task at hand, and create stress.
Do you have unfinished projects which are distracting you and causing stress? There are some things which will never be finished, like dirty dishes, laundry, and yard work, no matter how hard you try. But what about those other things which compete for your energy and your attention? Let’s look at three ways you can handle those open loops.
THINK ICE – IGNORE, COMPLETE, or ELIMINATE
IGNORE: Some things can be put off for another time. That pile of photos you hoped to put into a scrapbook someday? If this is not the time of your life when you can sit for hours with glue dots and scissors and create a masterpiece, then put all the photos safely into boxes and store them out of sight. They will keep for another season.
COMPLETE: After my divorce, I had gone back to college, but by the second semester I realized that I needed a paycheck instead of a tuition bill, so I got some practical training in web design and got a job. Almost ten years later I went back to complete the classes needed to graduate, because of the lingering feeling of unfinished business. It was important to me to finish what I had started.
ELIMINATE: Some open loops just clutter our minds and our homes. Like that second hand bargain piece of furniture which you intended to paint, but it ended up in the garage, buried under several other bargains you just couldn’t pass up. Once we pile up too many projects, they just become stressful reminders of our failure to get things done. Get rid of them. Donate them and close some of those open loops. Clearing the clutter from your environment can clear the clutter from your mind.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
In our walk with the Lord, there are things which we do for a season and then move on, but there are some things which we are called to follow through to completion. While they are different for each of us, the Lord will reveal them to us, if we ask. Sometimes He reveals them even if we don’t ask, so we need to learn to listen and obey.
COMPLETING THE TASKS
At the end of his letter to the Colossians, the apostle Paul says, “Tell Archippus: see to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.” (Colossians 4:17)
Paul advises Archippus to COMPLETE the ministry he has received in the Lord. According to this verse, the ministry was ordained by the Lord. We all have been given unique gifts and talents and have been placed in a position where we can serve the Lord. Our responsibility is to use what we have been given to expand God’s kingdom and to complete the work to which we have been called.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)
“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1: 6)
God calls us to serve and He equips us to do so, but we need to be willing and obedient. Let’s look at some of the obstacles which get in the way of completing the work to which we have been called.
Laziness
The apostle Paul gives this admonition in 2 Thessalonians 3:11, “For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies.”
I often have the words from The Eagles song, Lying Eyes pop into my head: “Did she get tired, or did she just get lazy?” I admit that as I get older, I sometimes feel like I’m getting both tired and lazy. Maybe it’s not even that I’m physically tired, but mentally tired. I no longer have patience for things that I feel are unimportant in the whole scheme of things. But if I put aside some of the things I used to do, am I replacing them with something better? James 4:17 says, “To one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”
“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” (Galatians 6:9)
Materialism
The story of the Rich Young Ruler is a good example of this roadblock which keeps some from fulfilling their God given ministry. When this young man asks Jesus what he must do to have eternal life, Jesus says, “You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” The young man replies, “All these I have kept since I was a boy.” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Luke 18: 18-27)
For some, material possessions may be a stumbling block, as they were for the man in this story. It wasn’t the fact that this man was rich that was the problem, but that he loved his wealth more than he loved Jesus. He was not willing to give it up. Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6: 19-21)
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6: 6-10)
So much time and energy is spent on things which must be left behind. I shop a lot at consignment and thrift shops. Sometimes I look around at all the second hand treasures and realize that these are the material possessions which someone may have spent a lifetime accumulating. They spent their money purchasing all this stuff and then spent their energy caring for all this stuff. And somehow all this stuff ended up on the shelves of a thrift shop somewhere. Stop wasting your valuable time and money on things which don’t last. Then you will have far more time for the really important things in life, which aren’t actually things at all, but people.
Busyness
If we look back to The Open Floor Plan chapter, we see that sometimes we are guilty of wasting a lot of time and energy on things which really aren’t very important. For instance in the case of Hospitality vs. Entertaining, we may be spending far too much time and money trying to impress others. Are you trying to DO GOOD or make yourself LOOK GOOD? We all have a limit to our energy resources, so be sure not to waste that valuable asset on the wrong pursuit.
So often our problem with being too busy is self-created. We may be trying to do too much because we don’t want to say no to anyone, for fear of disapproval. But that can cause much of what we do to be done out of obligation. We can not do it all. We may have to say no to people to be able to say yes to God’s calling for our lives.
The past two weeks I had my nine year old grand son visiting. After a few days I started to feel as if I wasn’t getting anything done. I couldn’t concentrate on writing or paying bills or any of my usual tasks which require much thought. I realized that the reason I could not get anything done was because I was already doing something else. My energy and attention were being used for something much more important.
“Your greatest contribution to the kingdom of God may not be something you do, but someone you raise.” (Andy Stanley)
When God has given you a task to complete, stay on mission. I often think of the song lyrics from Against The Wind, which talk about ‘what to leave in ; what to leave out’. Be discerning as to how you spend the limited time you’re given. Never allow the important things to be distracted by lesser things.
Digital Distractions
One of the biggest distraction by lesser things is the DIGITAL DISTRACTION! You know what happens when you go onto the Internet to Google something or just take a quick look at your Facebook page, right? You are sucked off into a black hole … a time warp … and suddenly you wonder how you just wasted the forty five minutes (or maybe twice that!) which you had planned to use for a nobler purpose.
Put God’s Priorities First
It is not possible to know God’s plans for you without first knowing Him. Give top priority to reading and studying His word daily. Get together with other believers for Bible study and fellowship. Set aside a time to pray, and not when you are so tired that you can’t stay awake. Give Him your best, not your left-overs.
When Necessary … And It Will Be Necessary … Do It Afraid!
If God is calling you to something you think is too hard for you, you are wrong! He will equip you for whatever it is He wants you to accomplish. And, if it’s something that frightens you, you certainly aren’t the first person and you won’t be the last to DO IT AFRAID!
You can be sure that there are many people serving the Lord daily who are shaking in their boots, but they are succeeding in their ministry, not by their courage but by their obedience.
The Final Chapter
One piece of my unfinished business is nearly complete. There is one more chapter left to write and then begins the process of getting published. So I press on towards the goal …
Blessings,
Sue
The Visible Platform 