Take time to reflect (3)

If your goal is personal growth, then you must make time for reflective thinking. (1) Remove yourself from distractions. Reflection and distraction don’t mix. Reflection requires solitude. It’s not the kind of thing you can do well near a television, while the phone’s ringing, or with children in the same room. You say, “But I don’t have time to spend in reflection.” We all have 168 hours each week. If you spend just one of them reflecting, you’ll be amazed how your life will be enriched. (2) Regularly review your calendar or journal. Most people use their calendar as a planning tool, which it is. But few use it as a reflective thinking tool. What could be better, however, for helping you to review where you have been and what you have done—except maybe a journal? Those two things remind you of how you’ve spent your time. They show whether your activities match your priorities. They help you to see whether you are making progress. They also offer you an opportunity to recall activities you might not have had time to reflect on previously. Some of your most valuable thoughts may have been lost because you didn’t give yourself the reflection time you needed. (3) Ask the right questions. The Bible says, “Oh, that they were wise…that they would consider their latter end!” Ask yourself, “Am I growing personally and in my walk with God? Am I strengthening my relationships with the people who matter in my life? Am I using the gifts and sharpening the skills God has given me?” Reflecting on such questions can change your life for the better.