Tag: Routines

Recalibrating Life: Halfway through 2019

Cheryl Gerou7 Comments

We are approaching the end of June, which means I have been on this journey of “recalibrating life” for six months. This week I want to share how I am growing and in what areas I need to continue to work at. I also want to share some changes that I am making for the second half of 2019.

I am especially excited that the changes I am making in my life are sticking. Many of these ideas have come out of or have been prompted by the “recalibrate life” books I have been reading.

Honoring the Sabbath has been my intention for the past few years. The last couple years I tried to set the day aside but I probably only followed through 60% of the time.

  • This year I have been able to really keep the Sabbath, by living out a slow, restful Sundays, honoring the Lord in His glory and sovereignty. My day begins with coffee/ breakfast and my personal time with the Lord, then attending worship service. Lunch and supper are simple soup or salad meals. An afternoon nap is often a regular part of the day. The remainder of the day is filled with reading and journaling, watching movies together, taking walks, or time with our extended family. It is consistently a day I really look forward to.

I shared about learning to have “slow feet” in a previous post The Diligent Intentionality of Slow Feet. You can read about that here. I am also learning to slow down in many areas. One of the most important has been in my time with the Lord. And that time has grown to be so much richer.

  • I am lingering with the Lord and really listening. I shared more about my learning about lingering here. I am especially enjoying scripture prayer. The Holy Spirit is leading me in such deep growth and I am basking in His love. I will be sharing more about this in a couple of my upcoming posts.

I know I have gone through seasons of slowing down and being present with the Lord, really lingering, but then I have drifted back into rushing through. This time I don’t think I will be going back, I don’t want to miss something so satisfying.

Setting in place an evening routine is another part of recalibrating life for me that has been extremely positive and helpful.

  • My evening routine usually goes something like this: dinner, dishes, a neighborhood walk, a bath, relaxing with my husband, pet care, then reading, and journaling right before sleep. I am loving it. It is slow and I breathe deeply in it! I move through my evenings feeling peaceful, not rushed and overwhelmed.

I am still tweaking my morning routine, trying to get exercise in it on a regular basis. Making my husband’s lunch for the next day, when I make dinner the night before, has really helped to make my mornings less hectic. I will share more about my morning routine once I feel more settled into it.

I am not rushing through life so driven and constantly striving. I am even choosing to take time for self-care.

  • I am giving myself permission to stop during my days, when I am home, to relax, to read, or to take a nap if I haven’t slept well. I no longer feel like I live in a “pressure cooker.” I can’t even begin to tell you how happy that makes me!

I am realizing more and more the importance of relying on the Lord and I have been seeking Him more in the midst of my days.

  • One thing that has helped me immensely, when anxiety seems to consume me at times, is remembering to do breath prayer. I have a few standby prayers that I rely on and they center me on trusting in the sovereignty of God. It is a wonderful practice that brings me home to His heart of love.

Having too much stuff and not enough time to keep it all organized really has caused me stress! But I am changing that too!

  • I am continuing to declutter and am really enjoying the open spaces. It is bringing a calm deep within. It is helping me get ready for our move, but it feels relaxed. I am not feeling stressed out as I have in the past.

Actually my feeling less stressed is a result of a combination of me decluttering both the house and my calendar.

  • I have cleared the non-essential from my calendar and am choosing to just add a very few special things to look forward to occasionally, like the baroque concert a couple weeks ago. I don’t feel as though I have to fill my calendar to feel worthwhile. I am loving the whitespace. I don’t “need” to get together with everyone. I have a couple of really close friends that I spend time with regularly and being with them feeds my soul because we are sisters in Christ and share deeply! I don’t want to be gone or busy every minute as I have in the past.

Another area that I have made some changes in is that of meal planning.

  • I am choosing to cook simpler meals. They are less time consuming and delicious. I find cooking to be very enjoyable until I get myself feeling overwhelmed because of trying to do too much. So, simplifying the meals has been very helpful and healthy.

There are a few things that I still want to incorporate into this recalibrating life season from the books I have already read. Specifically, right now, those are more spiritual practices that lead me in self-exaination and discernment. I started doing them when I first read about them but they have fallen by the wayside. I feel that I really want to make them a part of my life because they seem very beneficial to my relationship with the Lord.

I will be changing a few of the titles of my Recalibrate Life reads for the remainder of the year. I have decided on some different books that feel like a better fit for me at this point in the journey. I am still reviewing and working through some of the questions and answers in previous books. There has been a lot to take in and a lot to contemplate as I read and study these books. I am enjoying all of the learning that is taking place!

Now, about the changes that will affect you. Next week I will share my final post related to “A Place Called Simplicity” by Claire Cloninger. Then beginning in July and for the remainder of 2019 I will be posting just twice each month. One of my posts will be my response to the Recalibrate Life books I am reading. The other post will be about practices I have incorporated into my life or more about what I am learning as I make life application of some new practices. On occasion there may be an extra post I will share, but that will only once in a while.

I will decide at the end of 2019, how I will proceed with posting for 2020. I am learning so much and really feel so many positive effects in my life. Recognizing this makes me want to spend more time in the actual practice of what I am learning. But I also want to continue to share how it is changing my life. So this is about really finding a balance.

Thank you for being here as I learn and share about this journey. I enjoy your comments and encouragement very much.

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Less Stress with Routines

Cheryl Gerou1 Comment

“The way you begin your days sets the stage for the rest of the day.”

This month my Recalibrate Life Read is The Worn out Woman: When Your Life is Full and Your Spirit is Empty by Dr. Steve Stephens and Alice Gray. This is my last of the posts responding to this book. This post will focus on how to help make life less stressful by planning some helpful routines into your days.

“Routines can relieve a lot of stress by removing the need to make decisions or solve problems when you might not be fully awake.”

I have definitely found this to be true in my life. But in order to reduce our stress levels and find a more positive ways to go through our days, we need to consider what is causing our stress to begin with.

It may be helpful to just go through your day in your mind and jot down what parts of the day cause the most stress. Some typical morning stressors may include breakfast time, meal planning (packing lunches, prepping for dinner), pet care, and deciding what to wear, etc.

Once you have made that list of stressors, you can key in on giving some thought to what may help to make those time periods a little more easy and relaxing.

I have found it is often not the actual task that stresses me out, but it is more likely just feeling that there is not enough time to get it done. Or feeling as though I do not have what I need so I can get it done, often because I did not take time to plan ahead.

Sometimes it is just helpful to try to prepare for the morning chores the night before. Breakfast cereals can be put out and the table can be set. Clothes for the next day can also be laid out. Even the children can get in a habit of choosing what to wear and laying their clothes out.

Packing lunches the night before can be helpful as well. Depending on the children’s ages they may be able to pack their own lunches with some supervision. And with the lunch packing, school bags can be readied for the morning with the necessary papers signed and completed assignments put in. The more that children learn to do, the more independent they become, and this relieves some stress for the busy adult(s) in their lives.

As I mentioned before, not having enough time in the morning is a stressor for me. Feeling panicked and rushed makes for a bad beginning. I find that I need to give myself adequate time to do what I want to get done at a pace that feels peaceful, and that sets the tone for the whole day. This means giving myself an extra early start in order to fit it all in,

I also know that my day feels much calmer and I feel more at peace when I have set time aside to spend with the Lord. Reading a portion of Scripture and praying while I sip my morning coffee always makes for a great start to the day. I have found that taking a nugget of Truth with me for the day can help me stay grounded. Most recently that has been a breath prayer that I can repeat throughout the day.

I also like to know that there is something special in my day to look forward to. In the book the authors refer to these things as “give yourself a boost.” They suggest things like reading a page on an inspirational flip calendar or reading a devotional, playing a few minutes with your pets, or kissing your spouse a little longer before you leave. I would add to that a few minutes to journal, writing down what is on my mind leads to such peace, and that makes it something I always look forward to. Also, chatting with or texting a friend, just a short conversation, or a prayer request. The sweet connection brightens my day and is always something to look forward to.

It is very helpful for me to make sure I have a plan for what needs to get done in a day. I like to have a weekly menu, so knowing any grocery items that need to be bought, or other errands that need doing helps to keep more unnecessary stress-makers from creeping into my day. I can remain much calmer when I know what is coming up, because there always seem to be those unexpected things that take us by surprise and add to our stress levels. And the parts of the day that are already filling me with anxious thoughts in the morning are the parts that I might journal about, as well as, take to the Lord in prayer.

Getting a good night’s sleep is very important also. I am much more likely to get easily agitated and stressed out when I am feeling tired. I have recently made journaling and reading one chapter of a book part of my before bed routine. I am always surprised at how much these relax me and I seem to go to sleep easily. I always appreciate it when I get to sleep quickly. I attribute that to the fact that my mind was quieted by the positive, calming book and journaling out the thoughts that had been running through my brain. And then, even more importantly, tying those thoughts into conversation with the Lord in prayer brings my heart to a place of calm. Writing a gratitude list usually is part of my journaling process also, but sometimes I take time do that in the morning instead.

I hope that you have found something here that has been helpful to you, a routine that you may want to add to your morning, or an idea that will help make your day run a bit smoother. I highly recommend this book, I still am going through study questions and choosing more areas of application, things I want to try.

Next month my Recalibrate Life Read will be: A Place Called Simplicity: The Quiet Beauty of Simple Living by Claire Cloninger. Simplicity is definitely goal in my year of recalibrating life.