My Schedule Runneth Over

Life has a way of spilling over if we aren’t careful. Thankfully, there is something we can do to keep our schedules from running over too far.

We seem to have our foot on the gas pedal from the minute we get our driver’s licenses. Stop, go. Stop, go. Stop! Go! We quickly learn that to keep the vehicle moving forward, we must fill it up with gas, check the oil and fluid levels and obey traffic laws. 

But what about our personal lives? How are we treating our physical, flesh-and-blood vehicles? Are we running on fumes? Are we keeping our tanks full of gas, checking our oil and fluid levels and obeying God’s law? 

I am convinced that women are in a constant state of “Go! Go! Go!” no matter our life stage. We often find ourselves overwhelmed, overcommitted and stuck in an unhealthy cycle of busyness. And it doesn’t matter if we are in our 20s, 50s or 80s.  

Life has a way of spilling over if we aren’t careful, and it isn’t going to get any easier. God even revealed to Daniel that at “the time of the end; many shall run to and fro” (Daniel 12:4). All we have to do is look around to observe this reality daily!  

Thankfully, there is something we can do to change our direction and get in the slow lane. Our reference manual, the Bible, provides simple paths that teach us to keep our schedules from running over—and keep our spiritual engines running smoothly. 

1. Keep your gas tank full

Do you know that feeling when your car’s gas tank is almost empty? Our bodies tense, we start frantically looking for a gas station and stress hormones flood our system. We pull into the closest station and fill up, calculating how much extra we’re paying for gasoline because of our lack of preparation.

Do our days and weeks sometimes feel the same? Does our to-do list get longer and longer? Do we feel hopeless to ever get on top of it? And as a result, do we eat the things we shouldn’t or indulge in more pleasant activities to escape—and end up feeling out of gas?

Keeping our tanks full means focusing on doing the critical things first—even when all the fun distractions, new opportunities and inconvenient interruptions come up, tempting us to get off course.

• Start your day with God. Our first daily priorities are seeking God’s Kingdom and seeking His righteousness (Matthew 6:33).
• Do those priorities first (Proverbs 27:1; James 4:13-14).
• Set aside enough time for those priorities (Luke 14:28).
• Embrace those priorities wholeheartedly (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

2. Check your oil and fluid levels

When your car has no coolant, it’s at risk for engine damage because it can overheat rapidly. In other words, the vehicle can seize up and stop running. And that’s not good! We, too, need to keep from overheating and seizing up.  

Checking our oil and fluid levels means focusing on pacing ourselves and resting appropriately, even as we work diligently to complete the things that need to be done.  

• Make the best use of time because time is precious (Ephesians 5:15-16).
• Practice diligence (Proverbs 10:4; 21:5).
• Be careful not to wear out yourself or the people in your life (Exodus 18:17-21).
• When you feel overwhelmed, reach out to God (Psalm 55:16-17). 

3. Obey the law

I chuckle when I hear people complain that they got pulled over for speeding or a traffic violation. They often are indignant that they got a ticket, not that they disobeyed the law!

Yet, laws are designed to protect us, whether it’s the law of gravity or the law about stopping at a stop sign. 

Obeying God’s law means focusing on His wisdom and how He wants us to live our lives.

• Are our activities bringing peace to our lives? We should try our best to do everything decently and in order (1 Corinthians 14:33, 40).
• Time is short, and so much that demands our attention isn’t essential (Psalm 89:47; Colossians 4:5; Psalm 39:4).
• Timing is everything. Some things on our schedule may have to wait for a different season (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; Psalm 90:12).

4. Refer to your operator’s manual

We often reach for the manual in the glove box as a last-ditch effort to figure out what’s wrong with our car. It may direct us to use a specific tool or method to repair what’s not working right. 

Our operator’s manual, the Bible, is incredible! We can refer to it before, during and after life gets complicated! We live in a time when all we have to do is type in a subject in the search bar on LifeHopeTruth.com and instantly we have links to articles, blog posts and podcasts that will help us understand God’s Word more deeply. 

That’s a huge blessing! 

Looking to our operator’s manual means focusing on God’s inspired Scriptures, meditating on them, and talking to Him about how they can help bring peace to our lives. 

• Scripture is inspired by God so that we may do good works (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
• We should make our schedules and plans, but let God direct our steps (Proverbs 16:9).
• We can let His words stabilize our lives (Isaiah 33:6).

Sometimes we may still need a tune-up

And then, it happens. We get that unexpected phone call or lab result. The school nurse calls, and we must drop everything to care for a sick child. Perhaps our boss or client changes direction on a project that forces us to work extra hours, or a new employer or client comes in with stressful expectations and demands. Or, honestly, we scroll “just a little bit” on social media, and before we know it, time has gotten away from us.

Life happens to all of us.

It can be stressful to a breaking point. Weariness can set in, and before we know it, our schedule is running over again. 

That’s when we need to remember that Christ is our intercessor (Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1; Hebrews 7:25). Knowing that He knows what it is like to be human is comforting. 

Talk to God. About all of it.

Let’s keep those gas tanks full, check the oil and fluid levels, obey God’s laws and always refer to our operator’s manual, the Bible.