We All Get 24 Hours

Priorities, planning and time have all been on my mind for a long time. I have a lot of things going on right now and really have too much on my plate to continue with business as usual. I'm in my last year of graduate school and am looking for work. It's a pretty busy and involved process, let me tell you! Add on the birth of our third child and trying to brush up on some skills to put on my resume and it makes me feel like I've been pushed overboard in the middle of eel-infested waters.

Our 4th Sunday lesson in Elders Quorum today was really timely for me and has given me a lot to think about. The lesson was called "A Time to Prepare" by Elder Ian S. Ardern and is from the October 2011 General Conference. It reminded me a lot of "Good Better Best" by Elder Dallin H. Oaks from the October 2007 General Conference, which I've read dozens of times. This topic is so important for me right now because of how much I try to pile on my plate and accomplish each day/week. I've overwhelmed myself and it's time to change. The Lord has been giving me hints in this direction lately and these last few weeks (since my baby was born) has given me the chance to think about the direction I need to go in life.

For the past few weeks we've had my mom and then my mom/dad-in-law in town. We know they came to see the baby, but they helped out with a whole bunch of things around the house and were an awesome support. I was able to stay home from school to be with Angie and take care of needs, big or small. There was way more to do than I expected and our parents took care of lots of stuff. I would have been a mess without them.

Now they've gone home. And here we are. There's almost no way for me to convey (in person, let alone on a blog) all the responsibilities that I have on my shoulders. So I won't try. But I feel that I have been guided by Spirit of the Lord for the past months in knowing what to set aside. My dad taught me that the order of life's priorities should be

1. Relationship with God

2. Wife and kids

3. Church callings

4. Career

5. Hobbies

and this list has aided me in my decisions my entire life. It has landed me where I am today. I'll just sum up what I've thought and felt lately by saying that #2 has gone up on my list from where it was and #5 (such as developing my board/card games) needs to take a back seat to job hunting.

Time and time again I have neglected to make time for relaxation. I'm always trying to pack each day full with what will make a better Future: teaching kids, more scripture study, better programming skills, and much more. And guess what? I missed out on the Todays that I've been creating with all my hard work from Yesterdays.

It's time to change. And I'm happy to tell you all about it as I move forward.