"The conditions of modern-day living devour margin. If you are homeless, we send you to a shelter. If you are penniless, we offer you food stamps. If you are breathless, we connect you to oxygen. But if you are marginless, we give you yet one more thing to do.
Marginless is being thirty minutes late to the doctor’s office because you were twenty minutes late getting out of the bank because you were ten minutes late dropping the kids off at school because the car ran out of gas two blocks from the gas station—and you forgot your wallet." (From, “Margin,” by Richard A.Swenson, M.D.)
Does this sound like you? Are you running here, there and everywhere yet still feel like you haven’t accomplished anything? You are not alone. There must be hundreds of thousands of marginless people walking about each day trying to do enough, have enough, be enough.
Again, the Lord has been speaking to me about the state that His people are living in. We live a "marginless" life, so busy running from here to there and doing, doing, doing, that we have little time, or "margin" for the things that matter most--an intimate relationship with the Lord, our spouses, families. As a people, we are exhausted from the daily grind and are missing out on the refreshing of the Holy Spirit as we do the work God has given us to do because we have no room in our schedule for Him. And, unfortunately, believers are just as affected by this as the rest of the world.
We are missing out on the abundant life that God desires for us because we are drowning in the responsibilities of our everyday life. We have taken our eyes off our Creator and instead, have been focusing on things that have been created. We are not "content in all circumstances" as Paul shared with the Philippians and instead, desire more and more of stuff, activities, prestige and the like in an effort to drown out the voices that tell us we are not enough in our own selves.
When we create margin in our lives and intentionally schedule space into our days, we can spend meaningful time with our heavenly Father, listen to His desires for us and obediently walk them out as He leads us into abundant living. The abundant life is a state of mind, a perspective that allows us to live freely and boldly for the Lord and to be confident in who we are as His children. Abundant living isn't a destination to arrive at on a map, but a mindset to dwell in at all times that brings peace, joy and fulfillment to each of us. The key is intentionally slowing down, creating days, weeks and months with margins in them to allow the Lord to write notes in those margins as He directs our paths and fellowships intimately with us.
As you think about this today, what is the Lord saying to you? If you gave Him the time, what would He write in the margins of your life? What would it take for you to slow down and create some margin in your life? Feel free to respond below. I’m sure it will encourage others who also struggle with margin.
If I can help you create margin in your life, please don’t hesitate to contact me either by phone or email. I’d be honored to help you create a life of margin and balance as you journey with the Lord in all He has for you to do.