Life is busy.

What adult doesn’t get completely overwhelmed with the demands of work, family life, community responsibilities and the like? Sometimes just the demands of work are enough to consume more of the day that we have to give.

But when we let the demands of Life dictate how we live we relinquish control of our lives. We in effect say the “stuff” is in control.

For myself, I know that when I get to those crossroads where the multiple demands on my time and energy are causing me to lose sleep, become short tempered, or head for the Hagen Daaz, it is a clear time to STOP and do a gut check to see where my priorities are messed up. And I remember that my model should always be Jesus.

Scripture tells us repeatedly that Jesus went off to pray – sometimes while crowds gathered, sometimes in the wee hours of the morning, and of course right before He would submit himself to the mobs that would eventually kill him.

The Son of God – here to save the world from sin – took a break. Lots of breaks. And when He did He checked in with his Father in heaven.

What is the take away from this? That we need to take time to connect with God.

Be still and know that I am God.

When we take the time to tune in to the One who knows us best, who is the ultimate Peace Giver, we often find that investment of time pays dividends that multiply in ways we can never imagine. When I make the time to check in with God, I find that I gain a perspective and wisdom I did not previously have. Conversely, when my email is more important than spending time with the Creator of the universe, my entire effort is wasted.

When my priorities are screwed up, I’m screwed up.

Are you feeling stressed, overwhelmed, pulled in a million directions?

Take five minutes. Check in – completely – with God. At the end of that time I bet that To Do list seems a whole lot more manageable.