Life Priorities Are Vital To a Happy Life

Recently I've been learning about life priorities.  Here's a good story that displays the concept I've been working on in my life:

The Mayonnaise Jar and Two Cups of Coffee
When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else--the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

"Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

How often does life's little activities, chores, obligations get in the way of your happiness, or get in the way of the relationships that should matter most.  When's the last time you went on a date with your spouse?  Or had a "girl's night" with your bestie?  Spent time in the Word or in Prayer?  I wasn't very happy with my answers to those so I spent some time to actually map out my priorities on my computer using a fun little tool - MindNode.  Here's what I started out with:

Now that the basics are mapped out I know that first comes my relationship with God.  I need to make sure that I am devoting time to Him and His Word.  Next comes my marriage- making sure that I spend quality time with Jacob, letting him know that he's important and taking care of his needs.  Once those two are in order I know that so much stress will be relieved, home life will be better and that will allow me to focus on everything else- quality time with family, friends, and will reciprocate down to my career, serving, and my Power Up group. 

I encourage you to spend some time to map out your priorities.  Get specific, write down goals, think of where you want to be in 6 months, a year, 5 years with all aspects of your life.  Once you know where you want to be it'll be easy to figure out the steps to get there!