I saw a woman in a store the other day who had a T-shirt on that said said “Running on coffee and chaos”.
I laughed to myself at first and shook my head, but then I started to reflect on that. That’s the way my brain works. I can’t help it! I am always searching for things that are under the surface. Sometimes I wish I could turn it off, but I can’t… so I went there!
I began to wonder what that woman’s life was like, what she faced everyday, and what got her to a place that those words somehow resonated in her. I know! I overthink things a lot, but on some level, the lady wearing the T-shirt identified with those words. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have purchased the T-shirt, right?
Although in the split second that I read it, it seemed funny, it also made me think, “That is a very desperate way of looking at life and that perspective seems very unfulfilling. Like running on a wheel and never reaching the destination.”
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The truth is that all of us have identified with that statement “running on coffee and chaos” at one time or another. Personally, I know I have.
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As much as we all want to convince ourselves and others that we have it under control, there are points in our journey, that we just don’t.
I’m not the most organized person in the world, but on the flip side of that, I DO NOT do well in chaos! Chaos makes me uncomfortable. It makes me feel unproductive and unprepared and I DO NOT like to be unprepared! I think about this statement all the time…
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
There is no planning in chaos. It keeps you busy, but it is not productive. It is a destroyer of discipline and anyone who is successful at anything will testify to the fact that it takes discipline to be successful. Chaos can be “fun” for a season, but if you habitate, reside and run on it, you will eventually crash. A perpetual life of chaos is unhealthy and it will leave you lonely and unfulfilled. The worst part of it is that it leads to failure.
God, as He so lovingly ALWAYS does, directed me to reflect on my own life.
- Do I make time to, first and foremost, spend time with The Lord. Just having conversation with Him… praying, giving thanks to Him, telling Him my hopes and dreams and giving my Him my burdens? It’s not a formula, and if you try to make it one, you can easily make it part of the “chaos and coffee”… checking it off the list and moving on to the next thing. God sees your heart. I believe He wants quality more than quantity. I want that quality! I want to know Him! It’s so hard to stop the noise and the worry and the trying! I need that time to refill!
Philippians 4:6 – Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
- Am I filling my heart with truth from the word of God? Reading and studying the Bible is so fulfilling and empowering! It equips is with what we need daily. It is our sword to fight the battles of this life. Again, it’s not how much. It’s the discipline of undistracted time. He’s not asking us to be scholars. Just to open our hearts fully. He will speak to us if we will just give Him the opportunity to do it! I need His word in my heart to whisper truth in times of doubt.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 – All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
- Am I using up so much time and energy trying to figure out, fix, rescue or simply point out other people’s flaws, that I am unaware of what I need to work on in my own life? Sometimes it can simply be that we are unwilling to reflect on ourselves and be more aware of what needs attention in our own heart. I DO NOT want to be the judge of others. There is a place in a persons heart that is only seen by God. I pray to give the love and grace that I want to be given. It is so hard sometimes and I have failed many times, while rolling my eyes! Especially when I have felt misunderstood or dismissed. That’s when the test comes and character is revealed! I love helping people and encouraging them, but I hope and pray that I am always aware of my own character first before I worry about someone else’s.
Luke 6:42 – … how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.
- Sometimes we are just too busy to have a reflective thought about anything! Filling our life with endless chaos and distraction, leads to burnout, excuses and blame. The goals are never met. We are unable to stay the course, so we jump ship and head a different way. We can’t quite figure out what is wrong, because we’re not self-aware enough to see our anemia and how it is effecting us and the ones who love and care about us. Oh! And God’s will??? Distraction and chaos closes our hearts to receive spirit led direction by stealing our time and still moments.
Ephesians 5:15-17 – Therefore; be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Spend time asking God what He wants to say to you… What He wants to show you. You will treasure it like those precious, favorite moments with your loved ones that you have stored in your heart.
Colossians 4:2 – “Devote yourself to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.”
Colossians 4:2 – “Devote yourself to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.”
The Walk 