My Personal Inventory…

By Nancie Carmichael –

Is it time for you to take a Selah? For all of us there is season, and a time to step back to get some prospective on our lives and where we are, and maybe more importantly, where we are going.

Some of my favorite times have been times that I have taken a break from my day-to-day activities to set before the Lord, pondering my live, reflecting on the past, and dreaming about the future.

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Maybe it’s time for you to take a break to examine your life, as we are called to do as Christians, so I want to encourage you to find a quiet place to think with a notebook and pen. Write down all the things you are doing and all the things that are filling up your time.

Then cross off the things you should stop doing (a clue: when you feel “drained” by something it’s a good indication you need to stop doing it. When you feel energized by something, it’s an indication this might be something worth investing your time in.) Write down things you should add. Thoughtfully answer these questions:

• If my life were absolutely perfect, how would it look now?
• As I look back on my life, what am I glad I did?
• What things did I once do that I now consider a waste of time?
• From the above questions, where should I now invest my time, energy and money?
• Is there anything I should delete from my life?
• What person (s) made a difference in my life?
• How can I be that for someone else?
Read the story in 2 Kings 4:1-7 and answer these questions:

• What material possessions I you have? Think about it: Do I possess them or do they “possess” me?

• What are the talents and gifts that I possess?
• What connections do I have, and how might they help me?
• What experiences do I have, and how can I use them?
• What dreams do I have? What steps might I take to further them?
• Are there things that are “cluttering” my life that I need to delete? What would my life look like without them?
After completing this process I challenge you to take the necessary steps towards eliminating the “unimportant” and unnecessary activities in your life and to implement the ones that you have identified as life giving, important, and that will fulfill the goals and dreams that you have! Make a plan and write it down.

Nancie Carmichael has worked with her husband, Bill in the writing and publishing field for many years as they published Virtue Magazine and Christian Parenting Magazine. They now own a book publishing company, Deep River Books. Nancie and Bill have written several books together including: Lord, Bless My Child; and Lord, Bless This Marriage. Nancie has written and contributed to many books including Selah: Time to Stop, Think, and Step into Your Future; and her latest book, Surviving One Bad Year—Seven Spiritual Strategies to Lead You to a New Beginning. Bill and Nancie live in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and are parents to five married children and grandparents to ten. Website: http://www.nanciecarmichael.com/,
http://www.deepriverbooks.com/.

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My Personal Inventory…
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