When Your Margins Need Adjusting (And "When Treetops Glisten" Winner Announced)

I (Melissa) love when something from my “everyday” teaches a life lesson. Today, it’s a Word document.

If you’ve ever created something using a word processing program, then you probably know a thing or two about margins. Regardless of which program you use, there are “default” margins set, designed to create the right amount of white space around your words; to make it more legible; to give those words some room to breath so that the ideas can be fully understood when read.

But I have a little confession to make. I like to push the margins on my documents – squeeze out a little more space here and there. You know, half-an-inch on the top, a quarter-inch on the sides. Whatever I need to make sure that everything I want to say fits on the page.

Here’s the interesting thing, though. When you squeeze the margins and attempt to print the document, you immediately receive a warning message: “It appears that there is text outside of the allowed margins. Do you wish to proceed with printing?” And there it is. The printer is keeping me in check – reminding me that I am trying to squeeze too much onto one page.

So now I have another little confession to make. I not only push the margins on my documents, but I find that, many times, I’m pushing the margins in my own life, trying to fit too much in one day, one week, one month. 

And just like my printer warns me to keep my documents from becoming too crowded, there are warnings that pop up in an attempt to keep me in check in my day-to-day. Signs that I am taking on too much, trying to do, be, accomplish more than is possible.

What are some of the warning messages that I get when my margins are being pushed too far?

• I become annoyed with my 7-year-old when he wakes up earlier than I want him to because that means I can’t get the rest of MY things done.
  
• I look at a to-do list and feel my eyes well up with tears because I don’t even know where to start in order to get it all done.
  
• I break promises (usually to my husband or to my kids) because something else came up that I felt needed to be done first or because I simply ran out of time.

I’m sad to admit that in this week alone, I’ve received every single one of those warning messages.

In Monday’s devotional, I talked about my desire to pursue more solitude, just like Jesus did. And getting my margins in check is the first step. So I’m putting a few strategies in place to help readjust my margins.

#1: Take it to God. I’ve been praying for help in opening up my schedule, for a way to find more time in my day and/or use my time more efficiently. Of course, for the past few days I’ve been waking up at 5:30 a.m. No alarm needed. And I’m talking wide-awake! Looks like my next step is to look at this “extra” time as a gift and embrace it!

#2: Make real priorities my priority. I’ve heard it said time and time again that if everything is important, nothing is important. I’m beginning to understand that one of my weaknesses is making everything important and, as a result, I’m missing out on some of the things that I love the most. More importantly, I’m missing out on the things that God wants me to embrace. When I catch myself saying things like, “I would love to do {X}, but just can’t find the time,” I know that it’s time to re-examine what things ARE taking up the bulk of my time and making sure that they are TRUE priorities for both me and for God.

#3: Let go of the idea that I have to do it all. I put up fewer Christmas decorations this year than I have in past years. But the ones that I did include in our home fit beautifully. They have room to breathe, to be seen (just like those words on the page that fit within those default margins) and my family is enjoying them just as they have the excess in past years. I need to use this as a reminder that “more” isn’t always better. Many times, I’m the only one who notices the “more.”

I’ll be the first to admit that while none of these steps are easy, they are all necessary if I am truly going to increase those beautiful moments of white space. That's why I'm committing to cleaning up my page. Perhaps a New Year's Resolution in the making? However I approach it though, it will be an ongoing process. So I’ll take it a little bit at a time … maybe in half-inch increments!

What about you? What are your strategies for readjusting your margins and creating more white space in your lives? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

***The winner of the From Treetops Glisten book giveaway is: Charissa Skelton! Charissa, your comment was selected using Random.org. Congrats! Please email [email protected] with your mailing address within 24 hours! Thank you all who read and entered!***