Wake Up, Look Up

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hello everyone thanks for listening to

wake up lookup a podcast where we

connect events happening in real time to

the Gospel of Jesus Christ I'm Zach wck

and today's episode we're asking the

question what makes a good weekend and

the nice thing is this is our

Thanksgiving episode so we could also

say what makes a good holiday or a good

extended weekend this is a little more

light-hearted but I think in some ways

maybe more practically helpful than

other episodes we do that deal with more

serious things going on in the world I

read an opinion piece recently that was

asking the question what's more

important on the weekend is it to be uh

uh to have fun and relax or be

productive and there are Arguments for

both we all know we need to rest and

sometimes we feel great after doing

nothing we also know that can feel

pretty helpful to be productive to look

back at a yard or a garage or a house

that we've done something good in and

feel as though we accomplish something

so which is best well part of this is

rooted in the fact that I think most of

us lean one way or the other uh most of

us would If we're honest would say given

a Saturday with nothing on the calendar

we are either more likely to sit in our

pajamas under a blanket and watch TV or

or we more likely to go find busy work

to do most of us don't do a great job of

balance we tend to be all rest no work

or all work no rest and I think the

thing is balance is actually the

biblical idea I mean God orients Israel

for example in the Old Testament around

six days of really hard work I mean God

is always asking them to do really tough

things they do a lot of walking they do

a lot of fighting a a lot of farming a

lot of shepherding none of that is easy

uh but he also commands them to have a

day of rest there's work and rest

there's relaxation and productivity

balance should be our goal even God

himself after all in Genesis 1 spends

six days creating and on the seventh day

rest so even God is modeling for us at

least in that chapter balance so the

question is probably not should I relax

or be productive the the question is how

do I achieve balance particularly when

I'm more hardwired to do one over the

other so it's more likely for some of us

that the Thanksgiving weekend will be a

weekend of productivity where we feel

more tired at the end of it than we

would have had we just gone to work for

others of us we're going to do nothing

and we might feel guilty or ashamed at

the end of a holiday well let me offer

you a little pastoral advice and a

little advice coming coming from my

world on how to navigate rest and

productivity and the answer is a to-do

list and I know that's not a sexy answer

a lot of us are list makers and I want

to caution you because the to-do list in

and of itself doesn't lead the balance

if you're a relaxer your to-do list will

be do nothing check if you're productive

your to-do list will be 800 things and

at the end of it no matter how many you

check off you will have added two for

everyone you checked off the thing about

a to-do list is it needs to push you to

balance so if you're a natural relaxer

you'll think of all kinds of fun and

relaxing things to put on the list I

want to challenge you to put a few

productive things on there put a project

on there put an hour's worth of

housework laundry dishwashing whatever

it is you need to do put it on the list

if you're naturally productive put some

rest things on the list put on their

family movie put on their 1 hour of book

reading time I have found this

infinitely helpful in my life I'll even

give you a little insight into how I

navigate this so that in my relationship

as a dad I have on my to-do list one way

I'm going to connect with each kid each

week well that could be watch a show

with them have a conversation with them

go for a walk so that on my list is do

something with deacon do something with

Ava that's because I know I will check

off my list and my list is making sure

I'm relational I even put something on

there that is D period S period r period

that stands for do something romantic

which I realize to many of you sounds

like the least romantic thing you could

ever do but the thing is I want to be

loving to my wife but I probably lean

more towards the pro productivity end

and so a week can go by and I haven't

been romantic not because I don't want

to be but because I did the things on my

list I have found a to-do list as a

great way to make sure I do relax and I

am productive I am productive and I

relax maybe the key to you getting in

shape the key to you restoring your

marriage having a good relationship with

your kids feeling less stressed feeling

more productive is a list that you look

at and say man if I do these six things

over this Thanksgiving break I will have

rested I will have been productive and I

will have had a good weekend this

podcast is in Praise of a to-do list

which pushes us to balance which of

course pushes us to obedience to the god

of balance have a great Thanksgiving hey

thanks so much for watching this video

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