Encouraging You to Make a To-Don’t List

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Transcript

0:00:04 - Eric

Well, hey there, welcome to your Encouraging 5-Minute Podcast. If you'd just give us the next five minutes, we're going to do everything we can to encourage you. My name is Eric. This is my friend Heather. Hi Just to bring you some good news, some encouragement something to lift your day. 

Exactly. And, by the way, after you've listened for more encouragement, we'd invite you to listen to your Encouraging WPER, Virginia’s Home for Encouragement. Whatever your day entails, whether you make an actual to-do list or not, sometimes it's just a mental to-do list that's always ongoing. My friend Heather here found what she would call a to-don't list. 

0:00:43 - Heather

Is that right? Oh, and I love the concept of a to-don't list because it does involve your to-do list. You're going to make a to-do list like everything that has to be done today, this weekend, short-term planning, but stop for a second and take a look at that and what doesn't need to be done today. 

0:01:02 - Eric

Could be just as important as a to-do list. Absolutely Things to not do? 

0:01:07 - Heather

What can I delegate to somebody else what doesn't really need to be done, but the reason? I like a to-don't list or I like having like. When I was a kid, I had jobs that I loathed, oh I hated, but I came to find out that having jobs like that helped me see what I want to do. 

0:01:29 - Eric

Yeah, it can teach you something. 

0:01:31 - Heather

It does. Because I look back at that like, oh goodness, I had a big corporate job and a big nameless, faceless corporation and you were just a number and don't speak up and eat these mud pies and do what you're told. That can feel empty and eat these mud pies and do what you're told, that can feel empty. It was really soul crushing and I remember thinking I want another job in the company. But once you were hired in as that job you couldn't move up Like that was it. 

0:01:56 - Eric

Discouraging. 

0:01:57 - Heather

It was very discouraging. So I was in that job for about four years and I remember thinking I'm not stuck here, I can leave here and I don't ever want to do this again. So it helped me sit down and realize okay, why did I not like this job? Okay, I didn't like this, I didn't like that, I didn't like this. Now, I couldn't tell you when I was 22, what I wanted to do, but I knew what I didn't want to do, and so the next job I took okay, does this have any of these? 

0:02:25 - Eric

Yeah, you know, put that on the don't do list, on the to-do list. 

0:02:29 - Heather

But it also helped when I met my husband, because I had been engaged to the quote right guy, right, and everybody loved him. And boy, wasn't he great? But he really was not a great human being. But I stayed because I thought, oh well, this is what you do, this is how life goes. And one day God woke me up and said you can go. Really, he is not the one I have planned for you. So it wasn't. Weeks later I met my husband, who didn't fit the right profile. Right, his tongue was pierced, he had huge piercings and he had like a funky goatee and his hair was all shaggy. 

And he just was different. But it turned out that he was the biggest gift to my life. And I remember somebody said to my dad well, what do you think about this one? Because he looked a little rough around the edges, Right, and I will never forget overhearing my dad go, not much to look at, but, man, he respects her and he treats her good and everything. He was everything that all of these other guys weren't. And so the don't list the to don't list still helps me with what I've done with my kids. Okay, that was, I don't want to do that again, I don't want to react that way. So you know, I mean, my to don't list may not help me find out what I really want to do, but it can absolutely help me negotiate and navigate around the pitfalls I don't ever want to be in again. 

0:04:03 - Eric

Whether it be parenting or a job, occupation, any kind of relationship you're in or just the idea of having a to-don't list can be so very helpful. Remember to forget, I know when I first heard it I'm like what it was a point in a pastor's sermon I recently heard Remember to forget and it applies to so many different things. But it made more sense to me. It made sense during the sermon I was listening to. But then it made sense to me when I saw this about forgiveness Every time you remember, forgive oh, and I know forgiveness it's not a one-time thing. I mean, you choose it repeatedly, over and over again, even if the offense or the sin happened years ago. It's good to be reminded that every time you remember, choose to forgive, or and again. Sometimes you can't forget. It's almost impossible. But if you can forgive the offense, it can go a long way. Don't let bitterness seep in or pride to be planted in there and grow in your heart. Give it to God quickly. Remember to forget and forgive. 

0:05:20 - Heather

There's a verse, I think it's in Ephesians, where God even says forgive one another, just as Christ has forgiven you. 

0:05:29 - Eric

Yeah, hey, it'll bring you freedom, yes, it'll bring you joy. It'll bring you peace, for sure. We hope you've been encouraged. Thank you for listening to Your Encouraging 5-Minute Podcast. Remember, for more encouragement, listen to your encouraging WPER.