A Matter of Priorities

Think about the past 24 hours. How much of that time did you spend alone with your spouse? Or playing with the kids? Or just being alone with yourself and your God? Assuming you slept eight hours, you had 16 waking hours to account for, and I'll bet you spent less than a fourth of that on the above activities. Some days you may only spend an hour or two (maybe even less!) doing the most important things.

You probably spent most of your time working in some capacity or other. That's what's expected isn't it? You may have a job plus you surely have a household to manage, and it all must be done, right? Wrong! If you're typical at all, you are spending quite a bit of time doing things that don't HAVE to be done, or don't need to be done as thoroughly as you do them.

Sure, unless you want to live in a pig sty, you need to spend some time keeping house. You also need to prepare meals, do laundry, shopping and a dozen other chores. But how much time do you really need to devote to them. Try taking some shortcuts. You may feel guilty at first but as you find more time for God, your family and your self, you'll take pride in playing loose and free with household duties.

Here are just a few hints. You'll soon be dreaming up your own shortcuts - do share them with us!

Instead of folding underwear and sox, just dump them in the corners of their respective drawers. Who really cares if your hubby's skivvies are wrinkle free, anyway. Limit vacuum, mopping and dusting chores to once a week. Use more paper plates and cook out on the grill more often. (Dads love to do the cookout chores) When cooking, start by filling the sink with soapy water and drop each utensil or pot in the water as soon as you're done with it. Let them soak as you eat the meal, then just wash and drain. Your dishwasher will fill up more slowly without pots and pans. Make more skillet or casserole dishes and while you're at it make enough for two meals so you can freeze a meal for another day. Be sure to date the container so it doesn't sit idle in the freezer for six years. Use lots of aluminum foil; it makes cleanup a breeze. Also, go through every room in the house and get rid of things you don't need or use. Taking care of "things" takes up loads of time and all that stuff adds to clutter. And the best hint of all, put things away immediately after you use them. It only takes a moment and the house will always be clutter free.

Well, you get the idea and will come up with many more ways to take housework less seriously. Now on to another big time thief...extracurricular activities. Somehow we have evolved into a nation of people who must be going somewhere or doing something constantly. We're so busy we don't have time for the important things of life. Worse yet, we've passed this do-all, be-all philosophy on to our kids. They are as busy as we... and why? Because we taught them to be. We've encouraged them to join and do and go until they have no time to learn who they are. How many hours a week do you spend on activities outside your home and family? How about the kids? Maybe it's time to cut back. Maybe it's time to say no. Decide as a family what activities are worth the time they take and weed out the rest. You'll be amazed at the difference it can make!

Ah, we haven't mentioned TV. How many hours are spent in front of it? Television is great and watching choice programs as a family can be an enriching experience, but that's not what usually happens, is it? No, of course not. And it won't happen unless you plan for it, unless you are determined to make it happen.

Racing through life, waiting for this or that to happen or some goal to be reached before we sit back and enjoy living is a mistake. Do your real living now. Learn to be a little spontaneous. Drop everything and take the family on a walk. Read a story together or look at old pictures and tell the kids stories about their ancestors.

Ask the Lord to help you and your family realign your priorities, putting Him and each other first and placing all other time consuming activities in proper perspective. You may want to get a daily planner and schedule your time there. It works for me... most of the time.

An Everyday Survival Kit
Submitted by F. Bills

Toothpick
Rubber Band
Band-aid
Pencil
Eraser
Chewing gum
Mint
Candy Kiss
Tea Bag

Here's why:

Toothpick- to remind you to pick out the good qualities in others. Matt. 7:1

Rubber band - to remind you to be flexible, things might not always go the way you want, but it will work out. Romans 8:28

Band Aid - to remind you to heal hurt feelings, yours or someone else's...Col. 3:12-14

Pencil - to remind you to list your blessings everyday...Eph 1:3

Eraser- to remind you that everyone makes mistakes, and it's Okay...Gen. 50:15-21

Chewing gum - to remind you to stick with it and you can Accomplish anything....Phil 4:13

Mint- to remind you that you are worth a mint to your Heavenly Father.....John 3: 16-17

Candy Kiss - to remind you that everyone needs a kiss or a hug Everyday...1John 4:7

Tea Bag - to remind you to relax daily and go over that list Of God's blessings.... 1 Thess. 5:18

This is my gift to you. May God richly bless you.

Look What Coca Cola Can Do!
From Viola Gilbert

Just when you thought you knew everything....

To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl. Let the "real thing" sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.

To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a crumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.

To clean corrosion from car battery terminals : Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

To loosen a rusted bolt : Applying a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

To bake a moist ham : Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan; wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake. Thirty minutes before the ham is finished, remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.

To remove grease from clothes : Empty a can of Coke into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains.

It will also clean road haze from your windshield.

AND WE DRINK THIS STUFF!

A Story To Live By
Submitted by Viola Gilbert

I'm reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting in the yard and admiring the view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending more time with my family and friends and less time at work. Whenever possible, life should be a pattern of experiences to savor, not to endure. I'm trying to recognize these moments now and cherish them.

I'm not "saving" anything; we use our good china and crystal for every special event such as losing a pound, getting the sink unstopped, or the first Amaryllis blossom. I wear my good blazer to the market. My theory is if I look prosperous, I can shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries. I'm not saving my good perfume for special parties, but wearing it for clerks in the hardware store and tellers at the bank.

"Someday" and "one of these days" are losing their grip on my vocabulary. If it's worth seeing or hearing or doing, I want to see and hear and do it now.

I'm not sure what my cousins would've done had they known that they wouldn't be here for the tomorrow that we all take for granted. I think they would have called family members and a few close friends. They might have called a few former friends to apologize and mend fences for past squabbles. I like to think they would have gone out for a Chinese dinner, or for whatever their favorite food was. I'm guessing; I'll never know.

It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I knew my hours were limited. Angry because I hadn't written certain letters that I intended to write one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my husband and parents often enough how much I truly love them. I'm trying very hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that would add laughter and luster to our lives. And every morning when I open my eyes, I tell myself that it is special. Every day, every minute, every breath truly is a gift from God.

Tips Rejected by Martha Stewart:

Old telephone books make ideal personal address books. Simply cross out the names and addresses of people you don't know.

Fool other drivers into thinking you have an expensive car phone by holding an old TV or video remote control up to your ear and occasionally swerving across the road and mounting the curb.

Avoid parking tickets by leaving your windshield wipers turned to fast wipe whenever you leave your car parked illegally.
No time for a bath? Wrap yourself in masking tape and remove the dirt by simply peeling it off.

Apply red nail polish to your nails before clipping them. The red nails will be much easier to spot on your bathroom carpet. (Unless you have a red carpet, in which case a contrasting polish should be selected.)

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Revised: September 03, 2003.