I find it ironic the number of chargers an individual has for their cell phone. I include myself in this bondage as well. We have a charger in our bedroom, our kitchen, our office and our car (and at my house we still seem to never be able to find one). We also have taken it a step further. We have portable chargers, case charges, and even higher amp chargers to get our phones back up and running quicker. Well, it’s seems a little over the top but the truth of the matter is that the charger is crucial. We know that when our phone gets to the “red” we better start looking for some way to charge it up. We will even ask a total stranger to use their charger if we happen to be somewhere without one. Why all this craziness? The charger is critical because we know that when our phone gets to the red we are one operation (text, tweet, post, etc) away from our phone completely dying. And when our phone dies it becomes completely ineffective to do what it was designed to do.
Well what is true of the cell phone is also true of us in our personal lives. Most everything we do in life is pulling at us and from us and not pouring into us. With our phones we are intentional. We use them diligently, but we have times and places where have created habits of plugging them in. Maybe it’s in the car between uses, at night when you are at rest, or in your backpack strategically plugged into a portable charging device. No matter the circumstance, we know that charging them back up is critical for their use. What if we began to view our own personal lives this way? I have discovered that most of us are so busy and life has become so chaotic that we often times live our lives in the red. We are barely hanging on hoping for a breakthrough when we are suddenly faced with an unexpected struggle, financial difficulty, professional set back or family tragedy. In these moments we realize we have become ineffective of doing and being the person God has called us to be. We have great potential but we are now completely ineffective.
Do you a strategy for plugging yourself in and recharging your own battery? I believe there are 3 areas we have to intentionally invest in order to live a fully charged life.
Our Faith
We must intentionally invest in our spiritual journey and our own walk with Christ. Paul says that we work out our own salvation for it is God who works in us. He is our source of energy. If God is our source of energy do we have a strategy, place and time to plug into Him. Maybe it’s in the morning, at lunch, or before bed. Are we intentional about keeping our lives full of that which gives us life. He is our source of Hope and when we pursue Him we make deposits into our own hope tank we begin to see the struggles we face with the perspective that better days are ahead.
We plug into our faith by studying His word, connecting to His church and being attentive and in tune with the Spirit. I challenge you to make an investment in these areas. When my battery life is good it in direct proportion to my investment in these areas.
Our Friends
I often say, “show me your friends and I will show you your future”. The Bible clearly speaks that “bad company corrupts good character”. Do you have people in your life that breathe life into you? Do you have people in your life you breathe life into? Pessimistic and negative friends is one of the quickest ways to drain your battery and begin living in the red. If the people around are constantly wearing you down I suggest looking for a new peer group. This is true for young people and adults. Choose your friends wisely!
Our Fitness
I know for those that know me you are saying, “here we go”. I love fitness but I often find myself in periods where it is absent from my life. Here is what I have learned about me. When I am disciplined in one area it affects the other areas of my life as well. Our body is a temple and we need to invest in that temple. We don’t all have to shop at whole foods, post cross fit pics, and do an Ironman. However, we do need to invest in the temples that God has provided us with whether we like them or not. I challenge you. Make some basic changes in your day and add in 30 minutes of fitness. Walking, jogging, spin classes, lifting, etc. You will be a better and more energized version of you.
Where is your battery life at in your personal life? If it’s in the green and you are charged up and ready to make a difference then keep investing in those areas. We need people like you in this world. I need people like you in my life.
If it’s in the red and you are in a state of discouragement, be vulnerable with yourself and ask how you could do a better job of staying charged up. Dive into your walk with Jesus, make an adjustment with those you associate with, and get out there and move. You, along with those around you, need a well charged version of you!
