Mission vs. Busy

Do you have a mission?  Are you on a mission?  Some days I feel like I'm on a mission to get back to bed.  I wake up tired and think, "what do I have to accomplish before I can get back in this bed?" But that's just the #momlife.

I'm talking about a mission that guides your decisions.

I'm a doer, a worker bee.  I have lots of ideas floating around in my head.  I'm also fairly efficient, I can see how things could be improved to work better.  These, my friends, are a deadly combination of skills.  These skills, plus my desire to serve others, land me in hot water from time to time.  I end up doing a bunch of stuff because someone asked me.  Stuff that fill up my days, my nights and my weekends.  I get very busy.  Busy Aimee is tired Aimee. Tired Aimee is no good for anyone.

I don't know where I heard the idea first but, I love the idea that busy is not a badge of honor.  {You can read more about that here and here.}  I don't want to look back on my life and say "Man I sure was busy. Wonder what I accomplished?" I want to look back on my life and know that GOD used me.  I want to look back on my life and know that I served GOD, my family and others well, that I was a good wife and mom.

I recently listened to a podcast by Andy Stanley called Leadership Challenge.  It was all about leaders challenging the status quo without getting too far off course. Challenging status quo because it's no longer helping you live up to your mission: "Marry the mission.  Date the model."  In other words, stay true to your mission but stay current on how you achieve your mission.  Do new things to work towards your mission when the old things aren't working any more.

All this got my thinking, what is my mission? I spent a few days thinking about it and crafted this statement.

How does having a mission make life less busy?  You filter all your commitments through that vision.  "Is what I'm being asked to do consistent with my mission?"  If the answer is "Yes!" then do it.  But it's "Nope" politely but firmly decline.  Here's a little secret...it's OK to say no!

I've also found that when I'm busy doing things that are 'on mission', I'm not as tired.  God provides the strength I need.  Sometimes it seems almost restful when I'm doing mission related things.  It's a great feeling.

I'd love to hear about your mission.  Tell me about it in the comments or connect with me on Twitter.