Got To…Or Get To?
“I’ve got to do a bunch of stuff today God and it’s really gettin’ to me!”
“What have you got to do son?”
“I’ve got to go to prayer. I’ve got to call like 20 people. I’ve got to finish the editing project my friend sent me. I’ve got to water the gardens. I’ve got to walk the dogs. I’ve got to write to a list of missionaries a mile long. I’ve got to prepare youth group lessons and blogs and I have all this studying You said I had to do.”
” Do you like studying, son?”
“Yes God I do.”
“Do you like preparing lessons and writing blogs, son?”
“It’s one of my favorite things in the whole world.”
“Son, do you like writing letters to missionaries?”
“I love your missionaries God. Praying for them and encouraging them is very rewarding.”
” I thought you loved gardening and the dogs. That’s why I gave them to you.”
“Oh I do love them God.”
“And prayer don’t you love praying?”
“I do God. It’s like my breath!”
“Then you haven’t got to do these things, J. You get to do them.”
“You’re right God but there’s so many things on my list. I feel like I can never get all the things done today no matter how much I like them!”
“Then stop living as if it all has to get done today. Live like forever is yours son, because it is.”
Do you ever stress about the pace of life? What thoughts do you use to help you de-stress?
Lillie-Put 
Thanks for sharing this. I also battle with “getting it done today.”
You are welcome. May you be blessed with God’s pace.
Thanks, Pastor J somehow you post just what I need to hear, I love God’s divine interventions. I was just stressing about all the things I have to do or more like pay and then I got a prayer request which really put things into perspective. The most important thing is I have God, my son, and I GET to pray for others something I love to do. A-men!
I am prsaying for you today Deb. May God be your provision.
This is really good, and i needed to hear it today – sadly i needed to hear it about 8 hours ago, but it still helps now. Good word Bro.
Glad I could be used to bring a word to you Ben. Sorry it was a bit late.
Strange . . . now, when I am less busy than I’ve ever been in my life, I am more troubled by “got to’s” than I ever was when I was working long, l-o-n-g hours (in voluntary ministry) with much pressure and constant deadlines. It seemed I thrived on stress and deadlines and did my best work when under most pressure. Now that I am not tied down and don’t have to meet deadlines, I feel more “got-to” pressure. Maybe I’m not as organised/disciplined as I once was. Maybe I am not as dependent on His empowering as I once was.
I think there is something that happens when the community around us knows we are extremely busy. The got to’s seem to be more easily put away when there is so much on our plates.
Thank you for helping me see this the right way, Pastor J! God bless you as you do what you love to do today!
Amen and God bless you big today.
Hi Pastor “J”…….Years ago a friend of mine said he makes a “to do” list at the beginning of each day and prays and asks the Lord to help him do what needs to be done that day then he sets out to try to get all that’s on the list done. At the end of the day, if there are things that he simply was unable to do, because of his prayer, he assumes that in the Lord’s eyes, those things did not need to be done that day so he transfers them to the list for the next day and feels satisfied that his day was successful. His “technique” has been a good “de-stress” technique for me…….hope it’s helpful to someone else……..blessings!…….Kim
This is a great idea Kim. I do sort of the same thing but on a weekly basis. I take my weekly schedule to the Lord on Tuesdays and ask Him to bless, anoint and lead my schedule. It is interesting to watch how the Spirit works with my schedule from this prayer point.
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