Daily Bread

Someone once told me that when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are not asking, necessarily, for our food only, but for all the things we need. As I ponder what it is I should put into my daily schedule, I keep coming back to this prayer. So what is the daily bread of a weekly schedule?

I live by schedules. Between Excel and me we’ve gone through a number of daily schedules over the years. We’ve mapped out each day’s activities, chore lists and charts. I have school schedules, books lists, and graduation requirements. These lists help me think, and I get more accomplished if I have something that helps me keep on track. Now as I prepare for the coming of our school year, I am looking at the 24 hour days allotted me and am trying to decide how much “daily bread” I need to include to be fulfilling my daily requirements.

Certainly, the first task is spending time with God. What would a day be without some time to worship the King and read from His Word? It is during this time that I have a chance to see what it is I have been created to do, how I am to live my life, and what the standards are that guide my life. I also see the need to spend time with my husband and family in daily devotions.

Another task that must happen is that of serving others. For a homeschooling mom this is probably the most time-consuming portion of the schedule. I need to keep the household running: meals, housekeeping, and laundry. I must teach and train my children in areas like history, English, and math as well as teach them to be honorable, honest, hardworking and kind. I need to carve out a little time for my husband and I need to leave some time for reaching out to people outside my home.

Before I can call my schedule complete, I must always remember that if I do not care for myself, I will not be able to continue the task of caring for others. Throughout my week I need to put blocks of time for grooming, exercising, relaxing, sleeping, and using my mind.

Life is short. Much of what is required of us today will not be a part of our schedule in 10 or 20 years. Most of the first 20 years of our lives is spent with family and in school. The next 20 or 30 years most people have some time alone, time with a spouse, and time with a growing family. And then the house empties out and, if we are lucky, we get to spend time with our grandchildren. At some time we may have to experience our handing over the responsibility of caring for others so that we can, again, have someone care for us. I believe that it is good to remember that what we do today will influence the quality of our lives in the next season of our life. Our relationships with our family, our caring for our body’s health, and our time with God—all of these things are important. So as I work on my weekly schedules, I must look ahead and include what I want to be when I am 80 years old in the schedules I build today.

The poster on the wall in the teachers’ lounge made us chuckle; it read, “Life is short. Eat dessert first.” I believe that it would be more appropriate for us to post “Give us this day our daily bread.” Even so, I do think that in some ways the two sayings are related. Both require us to remember to do what is most important. There will always be activities that we would like to do that do not get done. If we do not decide what we will schedule into our day, we may get through a season of our life only to find out that we forgot something important. So as I go into a new school year, I am going to sit down with my computer and decide what needs to go into my schedule. I’m sure that I would be more comfortable with 36-hour days, but that is not reality. Priorities need to be set, and decisions need to be made. And when it is all done, it needs to be a practical schedule that can be accomplished on an average day.

Anyone want to enter the world of building schedules and setting goals with me? Pointers are welcome!

Blessings.