I’ve had the Bethel Song, No Longer Slaves, on a playlist that has been on repeat over the past few months. Every single time the lyric, “You split the sea so I could walk right through it, You drowned my fears in perfect love” plays, my eyes well up with tears. I finally stopped today in the middle of my workload and decided to dig deep into the meaning of this beautiful lyric and uncover why God has my heart stirring. I re-read the story of God splitting the sea for the Israelites, and this time God made me look at it a little differently.

Before God split the sea for the Israelites, they thought there was no hope. Pharaoh’s soldiers were coming after them to bring them back into slavery, and they would be trapped the second they reached the Red Sea. Seeing what they were up against, they decided they would rather be slaves again than die in the desert. But Moses encouraged his people by saying, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:13-14 NIV).” And, God did just that. He rescued the Israelites from the hands of Pharaoh by splitting the Red Sea "so they could walk right through it." When in your life has God split the sea for you? I’m sure you can think of more than one example when God delivered you from the desert. You may not even realize when God splits the sea for you because He goes before you, and often times, fights for you before you even get to the desert. He knows what He will deliver you from, before you do. He knows how He will have to fight for you, before you do.

I look back less than 2 years ago, with just an idea for a devotional planner and see where God has brought it today. That's a split sea. I look back at where I was four years ago, in a 10-year pharmaceutical career that brought me little fulfillment and God little glory, and here I am living a dream God placed on my heart where I get to bring Him glory every single day. That's another split sea. I can even look back at having my daughter 13 years ago as a split sea, seeing that we struggled with years of infertility after her, trying to have baby #2. That’s a split sea that happened without me even knowing it at the time.

Just as the Israelites faced great fear, these tough times brought fear upon me as well. For me it was fear that made me question if I was doing the right thing. Fear that almost caused me to give up. Fear that made me down right crazy and not fun to be around! But, then there was the favor in the middle of the fear. The fear that made me lean into Jesus, intently listen to Him and feel Him drown me in His perfect love. I imagine this is the stillness God wanted for the Israelites, when Moses told them, “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” The moment that you realize He’s got you and you trust him without a shadow of a doubt. This is what keeps you fighting, gives you hope and brings you that peace that surpasses all understanding. These are the moments that make the tough times bearable and beautiful. It’s for these moments that we can praise God for making a way where there was no way, and letting us experience His love in a deeper way. My prayer is that you surrender your fear to God and be still long enough with Him to witness His favor over it.

"Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." EXODUS 14:13-14 NIV

1-GIVE GOD THE FIRST MINUTES OF YOUR DAY

Have you heard the saying that your 5-9, dictates your 9-5? What does your 5-9 look like? Does it include extra sleep and waking up to a house full of demands, or are you soaking in God’s Word as He fills you with His spirit for the day? When it was on my heart to start rising early to meet with God, a friend of mine told me to pray before I went to bed that God would wake me up…no alarm clock necessary. I am NOT a morning person, so let me tell you, I was very skeptical. But, friends, it works! God not only gets me up at 5:30 every morning, but I’m wide-awake ready for Him to fill me up. And, when I’m up against a very full day (notice I don’t use the word busy…it’s full in our house because busy is negative and people tend to wear it as a badge of honor), I ask God to give me more minutes in my day. And He delivers when He knows I need it. I’m sure it has happened to you before and you don’t even realize it. You look at the clock and swear you thought it would be later…that’s God people! God giving you extra minutes in the day.

My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. PROVERBS 3:1-2

2-TIME BLOCK YOUR DAY

This has been a game changer for me! Owning my own business is a dream come true for me. BUT, trust me when I tell you it comes with challenges. I wear so many different hats that it was so hard for me to focus. I would start something (like writing this blog post) and then an email would pop in or I would remember that I needed to get a file to my printer. When I realized I was accomplishing such few things in there entirety by the end of the day, I knew I needed to time block (and speaking of emails popping in, make sure you turn off all notifications or sounds on your emails and social feeds). Distractions equal lost minutes in the day. Below is an example from my planner of what a “normal” time-blocked day looks like for me.

The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. PROVERBS 16:9 

3-GET YOUR FIRST FOUR DONE, FIRST

It’s so easy to put off the things we care about the least, or the hard things. But, putting those first will actually give you a huge sense of peace throughout the rest of the day. And, before you close your office door or leave to pick up your kiddos, write down your first four to-do's in your planner for the next day so you can smoothly pick up where you left off.

But all things should be done decently and in order. 1 CORINTHIANS 14:40

4-LIMIT SOCIAL MEDIA TO 30 MINUTES A DAY

And, definitely time block this one! This really does not need much explaining other than limit, limit, limit it! It’s far too easy to head down the rabbit trail of time sucking on social media. You will find that you fill your same sense of curiosity only checking it out for a few minutes. Since social media is a marketing task for me, I make sure to time block my personal social perusing at a different time as my business social responsibilities.

A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. PROVERBS 10:4

5-DO SOMETHING FOR YOURSELF

Whether it’s exercising, reading, learning, cleaning out your pantry (yes, this is actually therapeutic for some people!), make time for YOU! How does this add more time to your day? When you finish your day knowing you did something to fill your soul, your mindset will shift from “There are not enough hours in the day" to “Today was a great day!" 

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 CORINTHIANS 10:31

Your Anchored Press Devotional Planner can help you make the above changes. Filled with devotions to help you stay focused on God first, space to time block your day, and spots for those to-do’s that must get done, your planner is a tool to help you add more time in your day, allowing you to stay focused on God!

Try these simple shifts in your daily routine for one week and let me know how it goes! I'm praying for you!