A Look Into The Heart: What Are My Reasons For Being Productive?

One of my fears is that when I die I will look back and realize I should have spent my time differently. That there was so much I should have done that I didn’t do. That I wasn’t as successful as I should have been.

So when I began this study on Monday, I approached it from the perspective of “What are my reasons for being productive?”

I am a Health Coach, so productivity is something that I’ve ingrained in myself and what I teach others. So being productive, managing time, and getting things done isn’t an issue (as many of you voiced as well). Let me say first that this post is from my own study from this week, so it’s not meant to be a criticism towards any of you ladies. All of this was what I needed to study to improve myself, but I hope you find it helpful and edifying as well.

First, what are some things that you think of doing (an activity) when you think of “being productive”? As I think many of you also are, I am very focused on the career I am working on and being successful in that. I thought of:

• School and homework

• Working or growing my career

• Experiencing new things

• Working on projects & hobbies

• Spending time with friends and building relationships

Why did I think of these things first? Probably because that’s what so many of us are focused on daily. Think about it, when we graduate high school, it’s all about college. While in college, it’s about getting good grades so you can get a great job. After college, it’s all about your dream job. And throughout all this, we are expected to enjoy our young years by going out with friends, traveling, and living it up.

But my mind was turned to look at this from a new angle this week. It may seem like a no-brainer to “put God first” but like we discussed this week, sometimes we get distracted by what is urgent (school, homework due dates, excelling in our careers, putting our best effort forward in relationships) rather than focusing on what’s always important. Am I saying these things aren’t important? Not at all. But what are our reasons and motivations for being "productive"? Here are some popular reasons that came to mind:

• To be successful

• To become equal or greater than those we see as successful (some of us talked about how we compare ourselves to others)

• For wealth

• To meet a standard that someone else expects from us

• A sense of personal satisfaction from the work we put out

What is productivity if we were to describe the meaning of the word? I think it is the result of your work (what you produce) based on your attitude, actions, and habits.

Let’s take a moment to look at someone you’ve heard a lot about (because she’s amazing, obviously) but from a different angle. She’s the Proverbs 31 woman, the epitome of perfection, seemingly. She’s the lady we all want to be. She’s strong, motivated, thoughtful, resilient, generous, fearless, considerate and patient, she’s a business lady, cares for the poor, prepared, talented, valued, respected, trusted, honored, she does what needs to be done, and is a blessing to her family.

Is she mentioned to point out that we should have the business sense she does (vs.16), or her ability to wake up early to take care of her house (vs.15), or her amazing ability to sew clothing (vs.22), or always be prepared (vs. 26)? Are these things we see as very super productive the whole purpose of her presence in Proverbs chapter 31?

“Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised” Proverbs 31:29-30

Ladies, the point is not that she works tirelessly night and day, makes money, sews clothes, has a reputable husband, and is basically a wonder-woman in every aspect of her life. The point is that she is able to do these things because she fears the Lord. She is a virtuous woman, and virtue is only something you can attain by being a daughter of God. “A woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised” She does not compare herself to others because she knows her worth. She is not afraid of underperforming because “through Christ, she can do all things” (Philippians 4:13). She is motivated because she knows that God is always behind her, supporting her success. She doesn’t worry about whether she’s working hard enough because she’s simply being who she was called to be. Her responsibilities have turned into joys (vs.13), because she is caring for her family, for the poor, and showing God through every action. Everything she does is for His glory. God has not called us to keep up with everyone else. He has not called us to be smarter, wealthier, or more beautiful than any other woman. He has called us to be His, and to do his good works. I think that is such a relieving thought. Here are some thoughts I wrote down in my notes to become more like her:

1. Give your day to God - Everything we do is for His glory, but what does that actually look like. If you were to make a schedule of your day, would it include prayer, Bible study, helping others in some way? Perhaps there’s less of that and more time spent doing things like scrolling social media. This isn’t to say that we shouldn’t rest and work all the time, but be intentional about how you spend your time. It’s a gift from God, and if we have to invest in eternity (as Britney said earlier this week).

2. Make a list of your priorities and do the top things first.

3. Make prayer be the first thing you do during the day - talk to God about how you need to spend your time for his glory.

I took away from my own study that productivity should always be about glorifying God (Colossians 3:17, 23). That our actions should be a result of our faith, and anything we accomplish should be placed as lesser value than our service to God. That how we see success should be less about material gain or worldly acclaim and more about who we are in God. And perhaps most importantly, that this mindset will make it easier to be confident in who we are (therefore what work we put out into the world) and feel less inclined to compare ourselves to others. “Who can find a virtuous woman, for her price is far above rubies” That’s you, girl. You are valued. You are priceless.