Saturday, February 5, 2011

Learning to Live in the Here and Now….

Last Saturday’s discussion about being “present” really hit home and triggered a lot of thought this past week. During the week I reflected on how so many times when it comes to relationships I am always looking one step ahead and loose sight of the moment. There have been many times in my life that I have lost genuine and intentional relationships due to the fact that I was so worried about how it was going to turn out in the future or what they thought of me. I robbed myself of some great moments and conversations. I am a very busy body so when it comes to sitting down and building relationships it is difficult for me to really be “present”. I either find myself thinking about the million of other things I need to attend to or the fact that I could be using my time better.

The whole idea of being present and embracing the moments that are set before me really hit me hard this week when one of our family friends suffered a massive stroke this week. He is the type of person that is always consumed in his work and is always living life 2 steps ahead and never slows down to take a moment to be present. When I found out the news about his illness, I lost it because it made me really see that I have started to live my life in that way. I absolutely love my job, but I have found that many times I don’t do that great of a job of “being there” for my staff and students. I work in an inner city community and I have many families that come into my office seeking help or just wanting someone to talk to and more often than not I find myself coming up with all of these ideas or directions to point them into, but haven’t really intentionally listened or been there for them in that moment. Many times the only thing that they want is to feel listened to and cared about.

I think the reason that I am always trying to looking ahead is because I am scared that I am going to fail or miss out on a great opportunity, when in reality I’m missing amazing opportunities by not living in the here and now. I need to learn a balance between living for now and also planning for the future. I also need to learn to slow down and be content with not being immersed in everything and spreading myself too thin. I need to learn to trust God and now that He is the ultimate provider and that in the end He is the one I’m living for.

17 comments:

  1. So awesome to see your heart realizing these things, Adrienne.
    Keep seeking to release everything to Him, and He will use you so mightily!

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  2. Praying for your friend! Sometimes sadly it takes events like those for God to show us how we are not living our life the way he intended. How is your friend now?

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  3. preach it sista. this resonates with me.

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  4. Wow Adrienne, thank you so much for being so honest. I really admire that you came to the conclusion that God is the ultimate provider. I can really relate to you when it comes to a busy lifestyle. I think it's so important to slow down and genuinely live in the moment with the people around you. It certainly will be a struggle to make that adjustment when you're used to a certain pace of life, but I encourage you to keep trusting God! Change is only possible through Him!

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  5. I'm usually thinking about the next moment too. And for me—as much as I hate to recognize it about myself—it almost always comes down to a lack of trust. I'm not good at trusting God for the "next." I trust him to comfort me in the moment and to make sense of my past, but I don't easily give him the future.

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  6. I do the same thing. Once I attain something, I want more or am thinking about the next stepping stone. It's not that I am dissatisfied but that I am, in fact, so anxious and worried about the end result falling out or failing. I want to make sure I'm secure and that I can control the situation. I do the same with relationships. It's hard to focus on the now, which seems to be moving so slow, when you are worried about the bigger and better plans ahead. But, like you said, we rob ourselves and God of the present joy that is supposed to be seen in the moment here and now.

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  7. Thank you guys so much for your feedback! Just wanted to give you an update on our family friend, they are going to take him off life support today. Please pray for his wife and 10 year old son.

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  8. I'm praying!

    I have the same problem as you do. I've noticed it lately and been trying to make an effort to ask questions and engage in people that I talk to. I have to make a conscious effort every day. It is hard but totally worth it. I am enjoying every moment of learning about other people and trying not to worry about myself as much.

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  9. He is the one worth living for in the here and now! Thank you for the encouragement. I often worry about the future, but the future will take care of itself as it in in God's plans. We cannot waste today with worry. :)

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  10. Too true, being present is so much harder than it sounds. I think you hit it spot on when you identified it as a trust issue - I need to chew on that a bt now ...

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  11. Great thoughts! One step at a time. One moment at a time. Just keep doing what God has given you to do for this moment, faithfully. Praying for you in this.

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  12. Wow, what a great way God moved in you this week. Don't have hesitations for knowledge is power. Now that you are aware, you can do the things to change what it is God is revealing to you to change. I also spread myself very thin. And the result is that I don't give anything my best. And God deserves our best. But He honors that you want to be your best for Him and He will bless you with the resources and strength to do what it is He plans to do with you. I will keep you in my prayers with this as I can really relate to where you're at. Keep holding onto His presence and you can't go wrong :)

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  13. Yes! This is so wonderful. I am so glad that you realized this, even though it may have been a little rough with the loss of a friend, I'm sorry to hear that. I encourage you to keep on living in the present, in my life, it was opened up to many doors. It allows the Lord to use us right where we are at. Remember to be an empty vessel ready to allow the Lord to fill you with his Spirit!

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  14. i had a great time with you at lunch this week! i find that when i am discontented with my circumstances i tend to "check out" of the here and now. i'm praying God would sustain you and fulfill you in the moment! :)

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  15. I completely agree with you...living in the present is really about trusting God. I want to give up my worries and listen to what he is saying as I meet people every day.

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  16. thanks for sharing, adrienne. it's so easy to have our hearts divided up into different situations, but i really appreciate your desire to re-focus.

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  17. This idea of being present has been a recurring theme with many of us. It's just so easy to look back, or dream ahead and forget to honor Christ in the moment.

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