Scheduling?

Dear Friends,

You may not have even noticed, but I confess, I didn’t send out summer newsletters. Life got a little out of control with travel, health problems for three, life-altering career decisions for two, other distractions, and a general feeling of burnout.

Now it’s September, and time for a fall routine. Though it’s so hard to say good-bye to summer, there is something to be said for a little discipline. One friend relishes the thought of returning to her women’s Bible study. Another woman looks forward to the discipline of working out. For me, after a complicated summer, I look forward to refocusing on God, family, and friends. That kind of simplicity sounds attractive. But it also takes deliberate discipline. It’s like cleaning out the garage—it doesn’t happen by accident. You have to roll up your sleeves and weed out the clutter. To focus on what is important, we sometimes have to get rid of what isn’t. That discipline is what brings focus, order, and simplicity.

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Heb. 12:11)

Blessings,