Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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Three Word Wednesday :: Fullness versus busyness

April 8, 2015 by Kristin Leave a Comment

My friend Kayse and I were chatting about our ordinary lives recently and she commented that it sounded like a full week in a good way.

She nailed it.

My life feels full right now.

But I’m learning full is different and healthier than busy.

We have some boundaries on our lives. The kids are allowed one extracurricular activity at a time. We make every effort to eat dinner together, even if that’s at Subway after soccer practice.

We just got back from a fun visit to Louisville, where we hung out with my mom, my brother and his family, and my dear friend of almost 25 years Katie and her boys. We had an impromptu visit with a high school friend and his wife who were in town and joined us just in time for Kentucky’s Final Four game. We’re going camping with our best friends this weekend.

We are fundraising for a Guatemala trip, planning birthday parties because three of the four of us have birthdays within two weeks from late April to early May, engaging with local ministry opportunities, and making time to be with family and help friends.

These things fill our calendars but I’m not letting any of them go right now. I believe in everything we’re doing right now. And I believe we’re supposed to be doing it.

Seasons come and go in life. Not every one will feel this full. {Tweet that.}

Trips are temporary but worth the journey. Our birthday celebrations will be over before school is out for the summer, but these are part of the memories of our lives. We come home from Guatemala on July 11, but I know we’ll have a new perspective.

With the fullness comes unique opportunities to see God working – especially in my recovering perfectionist self.

Within the fullness, I’ve been able to find some stillness. Recently I told my friend Jen sometimes rest comes in chunks of time following a packed day. Right now, Mondays and Wednesdays tend to be fuller than Thursdays. The summer is bound to look different. And then in August both my kids will be in school full time.

I know I need the time to take deep breathes, do laundry, and regroup my soul, so I clear out time for that. Some evenings I need to clean off the kitchen table before I sit down on the couch because it keeps me from being stressed out. But sometimes the dishes sit next to the sink for a day or two.

I don’t say yes to every good thing. And not every good thing in our lives is forever. {Tweet that.}

That’s the beauty of seasons. Remembering that helps me embrace my full life right now.

________________

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Filed Under: community, faith, family, friends, life, road trips, seasons, Soli Deo Gloria, Three Word Wednesday

Comments

  1. JViola79 says

    April 8, 2015 at 11:34 am

    Kristin, it is so true that seasons bring change & not every season is busy. And this here is the point>> "With the fullness comes unique opportunities to see God working." May we have eyes to see the unique opportunities God puts in front of us. So grateful to have been here this morning!

    Reply
  2. Candace Creates says

    April 8, 2015 at 11:45 am

    I can so relate here, my friend. I'm unfortunately feeling more busy than full lately. Thank you for opening my eyes to what is probably my problem, following my schedule instead of God's. You have a lot of spring birthdays! Ours are pretty spread out through the year. I hope you enjoy each celebration :). Thanks for this today!

    Reply
  3. Beth says

    April 8, 2015 at 1:31 pm

    I love how you relate to life being "full" these days. I have been using that term a lot recently. Because life if full. The word is so much more appropriate than busy. It's full of good things the Lord is asking us to do. It's full of some hard things too but God is with us and teaching us through those things. Like Joanne highlighted, "With the fullness comes unique opportunities to see God working." And He is always working!!
    So blessed by you, friend. So grateful you are part of my life.
    xoxo

    Reply
  4. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 1:42 pm

    Yes, I've been praying for those eyes too, Joanne. So glad you're here today!

    Reply
  5. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 1:43 pm

    Yeah, the birthday season is a bit crazy but fun! I hope you find some margin in your calendar – I know that always helps me. I'm so glad you're here, Candace!

    Reply
  6. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 1:44 pm

    "It's full of good things the Lord is asking us to do. It's full of some hard things too but God is with us and teaching us through those things." –> THIS is EXACTLY how I feel. So grateful for your presence in my life, Beth. xoxo

    Reply
  7. Sharita Knobloch says

    April 8, 2015 at 2:40 pm

    Oh girl– right when I saw your title, I knew it was going to speak to me. And it did.

    The last couple of weeks have been a bit wonky– not "busy" with my typical tasks, but rather full with a reunion with my Beloved husband via army things. And now, this week, I realize how "behind" I am with tasks– but laying many of them down, knowing that the fullness of our family time is so-much-more fruitful than a busy to do list.

    Amen, friend. AMEN!

    Reply
  8. Susan says

    April 8, 2015 at 3:42 pm

    Kristin, it sounds as though you have a pretty good handle on this life thing! Flow with the seasons – that is enormously wise. xo

    Reply
  9. Jen Ferguson says

    April 8, 2015 at 5:56 pm

    It's amazing to find the balance – which I think is where that full feeling. It's kind of like food – you are satisfied but not stuffed. Healthy but not anemic or over-gourged. Love you, friend! And I am hoping for a face to face, too. Have you thought about Speak UP?

    Reply
  10. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 6:21 pm

    Yes, I get the food analogy, for sure! I have thought about Speak Up but it's not at a good time for me, at least not this year. We're going on a mission trip to Guatemala earlier in July and then to St. Louis with friends that same weekend of the conference. I'd love to go sometime, though! Love you, Jen!

    Reply
  11. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 6:21 pm

    Um, some days I do, Susan, and some days are hard. But that's part of it, I suppose. God's certainly doing a work in my life. Thanks for being here.

    Reply
  12. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 8, 2015 at 6:22 pm

    So glad, Sharita! Yes, keep laying those tasks down for what matters. It's hard some days but definitely worth it. I'm glad you're here today and appreciate your encouragement.

    Reply
  13. Tiffany says

    April 8, 2015 at 10:33 pm

    I could almost hear the sigh at the end of this post – you have such great perspective on balance here. I'm on the busy end of fullness right now, but there is light at the end of the tunnel and I'm craving it. Your words resonated with me – sometimes we've got to clean before we rest (so the Type A stops screaming) and other times we let things go. I think there is grace in that and God moves when we choose wisely. Thanks for sharing your fullness!

    Reply
  14. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 9, 2015 at 2:13 pm

    Yes, a sigh certainly came with this realization. I'm still learning about balance, but God's brought me a long way from where I used to be, thankfully. And I totally know about that Type A screaming … all too well. 🙂 Thanks for your comment here that is packed with encouragement for me. I love getting to know you.

    Reply
  15. Dawn says

    April 9, 2015 at 3:35 pm

    I smile each time I visit you. It feels like a snapshot into your life, a glmpse of Kristin that you are willing to share. In His grace we get to come to these realizationg about the good and the perfected in our selves and learning to choose His way over our own, trusting that he meets us. When we do that, even when we are FULL…even when we ARE busy… there is a deep abiding peace. Sometimes I question, even whine, about why I have to bend yet one more time, but every single time i do, EVERY TIME we let ourselves walk through the doors HE opens and thank Him for the doors He shuts, it is good.
    Rejoicing with you today, in this fullness and the awareness of His presence in your present. Encouraging you today to be ok with the full sink, too. 🙂
    Blessings and thanks for faithfully hosting a place of grace to meet others on the journey!
    Dawn

    Reply
  16. Laurie Collett says

    April 10, 2015 at 2:30 am

    Praise God when He fills our cup to overflowing! His strength is made perfect in our weakness, and he will see us through whatever He has assigned to us! Thanks for hosting & God bless!

    Reply
  17. Laura says

    April 11, 2015 at 5:03 am

    There is beauty in both the stillness and the fullness! Luckily, we can find both of those things in the same day. I hope you're having a great week. 🙂

    Reply
  18. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 13, 2015 at 12:48 pm

    And, really, I find myself needing both stillness and fullness. You're right, they can happen in a moment's notice. Thanks for being here, Laura!

    Reply
  19. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 13, 2015 at 12:49 pm

    Yes, Laurie! Amen! Thanks for being here.

    Reply
  20. KristinHillTaylor says

    April 13, 2015 at 12:50 pm

    Thanks for your comment, Dawn! I appreciate your encouragement so much. xoxo

    Reply

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Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our eighth-grade girl who never forgets, our have-no-fear fifth-grade boy, and our joy-filled preschool girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

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