Priorities

"God has given us 24 hours.  Of it, 8 hours belong to work.  So when we work, we work hard for that 8 hours.  After that, I don't expect you to do OT because the remaining hours belong to your family and yourself."

Such words of wisdom from my ex-supervisor.. For the longest time, this word "Priority" has been weighing on my mind.

In my working life, last June, I was asked by my boss if I would like to take up the leadership role to start up a new programme. Prayed through it.  Discussed with Geo.  Thought through the pros and cons.  Chatted with my colleague.  Finally, decided that I will take it up.  I kinda saw it as a chance again to do something which I felt that I failed to do in my previous organization.  After all, failures are the mothers of success.  I was mindful not to simply live up to the expectations that others have set upon me yet at the same time, being very mindful also not to set sky high expectations.

In my married life, the biggest struggle I had was to juggle my time between two families - Geo's and mine - amidst ministry, friends and work.  I strive to spend time with both families, amidst the difficulties.  I do not think that our parents has expectations on us to always be around.. Neither do I think that we have placed high expectations on ourselves.  Neither do I think that it's about being fair.  However, I do believe in honoring the hearts and hands who painstakingly brought us up

With the coming of Faith, Geo and I has been chatting about how shall we go about spreading our time.  What will our priorities be by then?  Is ministry going to take a backseat?  How is couple time going to look like by then?  Between Faith and me, who should Geo focus more on?  Likewise, between Geo and Faith, who am I going to focus?

We then concluded that above all (other than God), family comes first.  Within the family unit, the marriage is most important.  How we behave as a couple, Faith will pick it up.  We strongly believe that a good marriage life is the foundation of being good parents. 

Ahead of us is a life we do not know, to be honest.  We can only be as prepared as we can be.  Ultimately, setting our priorities right, seeking God's wisdom is the only way to go.  Whether at work, or with family or even as a couple, priorities shapes who we are.