Just Say No!

I am sure that we  have all done what I am about to share. We have found ourselves committed to one too many things and reached the point of burnout. Today someone that I love dearly came to me with yet another commitment. As I told this person yes to avoid hurting their feelings the weight of my yes sat heavily on my shoulders. In my mind I thought “Just say NO!” Have you been there before?

Because of situations like this I see firsthand how powerful that little word “no” can be! Imagine for just a moment how different your life would be had you said no to the smallest things. What if you said “No” to that second..or third helping at dinner? What if you said no to that time draining commitment that stretched you so thin that you couldn’t focus on the important things in your life?

We have to get to a place where we understand the true urgency and value of our time and refuse to give it up to any old thing that comes along. Think for a moment about recent commitments that you have made. Is there anything that you can think of that was not worth your time? Have you committed to something out of pressure rather than being able to make a sound decision? You have the power to say no to burn out and over commitment in your life.

I have now developed what I call the “No Test”. When you start making commitments try passing them through this system. You can switch out some of your qualifying questions to make it more suitable to you. In order to get where God is taking you sometimes it will require a no however, in the end it will definitely be worth it!

THE NO Test:

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Erica Jefferson is an author, speaker and Vision Coach. She has a true gift for motivating people combined with a passion to share the Gospel of Jesus. Erica is the founder of Be Inspired!, an online women’s ministry (www.beinspired-online.com) and the author of “Jump Start Your Dream” and “100 Ways to Conquer College.” She currently lives in Maryland with her husband Julius and her two children.