Two Things

I need two things very badly!  I need slack in my schedule and I need an outward orientation.  Said in a different way - I need to have open spaces in my calendar; areas of unscheduled time and with that, an openness to filling the time for someone else.  Open space and openness to others.

As I ponder those two things, it seems that the second one is the nut to crack.  It's the one Jesus calls me to.  It's the one Jesus models in His life.  As He traveled the road of ministry, healing, teaching, giving new life, He always had time for people.  He had an outward orientation.  It seems that He designed His time around serving others, rather than an agenda of "to dos."  His whole orientation was outward, other-directed, life-giving, selfless service, rather than personal goals in a daytimer. 

So, what would that look like in my life?  I mean, in my iPhone, I use an app called GoTasks which stores all my to-dos (I have 19 for today) and it even links them to my gmail account, so they're always in front of me.  What if I had only one for today that read, "Open your eyes and your ears to the needs around you.  Open your senses to the cries of people you meet and then do something for them!"  What if my calendar had large empty spaces in it, so that a response to people was possible?  I think that would be a radical shift - a faithful shift - a "turn myself upside down" shift.  And, I think that's what Christ's message is to us!  So, what's the cry right in front of me?  And, what do I do about it?