Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should. Psalm 90:12 (TLB)

Note: For the next couple of days, I will be directing my posts towards those of us who have chronic illnesses, but there are hopefully pieces that anyone can use. Enjoy!

I talked about this before, but it’s worth repeating – you have to make time to rest. If you don’t use a planner or scheduler, make it a point to get one. Your phone has a calendar on it – use it. Sit down and schedule out what needs to be done. Take notes of appointments, holidays, birthdays, etc. and prioritize them according to necessity. Then take a step back and look – do you have too much on your plate?

If you have a chronic illness (or really, even if you don’t), you have to take care of your body first. If you’re piling things on so that you’re up late doing work, then you aren’t getting the rest you need. If you’re constantly on the run, eating whenever and whatever you can, you probably aren’t getting the nutrients your body needs (plus, you’re taking in excess fat, sodium, and carbs). And if you’re scheduling or delaying doctor appointments around your schedule instead of scheduling other things around your appointments, you’re not prioritizing your health. Whichever illness(es) you suffer from, it’s almost a guarantee that stress of being too busy will exacerbate your symptoms. Running around until you’re exhausted will cause flares, pain, blood and hormone imbalances, and can potentially cause more serious issues.

I get that life is busy. Some weeks it seems like you barely have time to sit down. That’s why you need to manage your time ahead of time. You may have to cancel some already-planned dinner dates and kids’ activities. You might not be able to go to that Hall and Oates concert you’ve been wanting to go to. Trust me when I say that it will be okay – they’re horrible in concert anyway. My point is, spend your time wisely: budget your time and stay on task in order to get the “important” stuff done. Then, you can use any extra time left over for the fun things. In that same vein - there’s no point scheduling and planning if you waste your time doing fruitless, distracting activities. I know that I waste a little too much time on social media and the internet, so it’s my goal to lower the time I spend there. Set limits for yourself, and stick to them. By the way, phone alarms are a great way to redirect yourself (I’ve set alarms entitled “Holy Spirit Check!” and “Study Time” to remind myself to stay in tune with God. You can easily set a “Get off Social Media” or “Have you done ______ Yet?” alarms!).

I know I kind of seem like a nagging party pooper in this post, but if you want to be victorious and still have your health at the end of this year, you have to make your health as much of a priority as your other goals.  1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” This is not just a verse about sex- God is honored when we take care of ourselves physically. God also gave us discernment and knowledge about our own bodies – don’t ignore the signs that you need to slow down.

Food for thought: Please don’t sacrifice your health trying to be superwoman (or man). Be proactive about taking care of yourself before your body demands that you give it attention. Schedule the doctor appointment you’ve been putting off. Cancel your girls night out and go to bed. Instead of shopping today, just sit at home and relax. It’s okay to do these things once in a while, if not for anyone else but you, your health, and God.