The Problem with "To Do Lists"

My morning routine usually begins with at least a mental “to do list”, if not a physical list. I have discovered that my system is a deeply flawed. Perhaps yours is too.

Don’t get me wrong, there is some deep satisfaction from accomplishing and crossing off things on a list. However, I have found that the list of “to-do’s” tends to accumulate and I end up feeling dejected. This arbitrary list always grows rather than shrink and I am doing it to myself. If I look closely, my list isn’t always productive, relational, or even the most important things I end up doing that day.

I have realized that I am missing a very important part in my routine, which is to ask God what he wants me to do each day before anything else. You might think God doesn’t care about all that small stuff but that wouldn’t be true. God cares about it all.

If I am doing things outside of God’s will, he cares. If I am not picking up on the things that he wants us to be doing because our attention is elsewhere, he absolutely cares. We are his workmanship, his vessel, designed to do good works on his behalf. Of course, he cares!

In fact, Jesus did nothing without the say so from his Father, so why should we be any different? I need to wake up and ask God what he wants me to do each day and that’s going to take some practice. It is a mindset change. A change of focus.

When I remember to ask God first, I have found that the rest of the small stuff takes care of itself. My list is much shorter when I talk to God about it first, yet at the end of the day I feel much more accomplished and satisfied. Isn’t that just like God? When we focus first on him, everything else takes care of itself. I am so thankful for that.

Do you think you could be setting yourself up for failure in any of your current routines?

In what ways does your to-do list change when you approach is from a biblical perspective compared to a worldview?

What does God want to accomplish in or through you today?

Scripture

“So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” John 5:19

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:33