The “Done” List
I’ve been going through a weight-loss program called “Noom.” Truth be told, I did really well the first 2 weeks (lost 2 kgs) but then it was my birthday weekend, we had our father-in-law with us for 3 weeks, and many more excuses later I’ve gained back everything and then some. But while I haven’t been 100% committed to the nutrition, exercise, and sleep recommendations on the program, I have been reading the daily tips pretty faithfully.
“Noom” provides psychological, scientific and practical tips each day to help you modify your thinking & behaviour.
Today, it told me the physiological effects of stress (that includes weight gain) and reminded me to start each day with a smile and enjoy JOMO (joy of missing out). It also told me to forget my to-do list and start the day with a “done” list. Huh?
The “go go go/can’t stop, won’t stop” mentality, of “focusing so much of our efforts on the future often produces a stress response in our bodies” (Noom), even if we can’t feel it. So the solution? Start your day with a “done” list, writing out 10 things you’ve done in the past 3-4 days – then relish that moment before moving on with your day.
It made me think (as often Noom tips do) about our spiritual health as well. So often our prayers are a list of “to-do” for God, asking Him to help us with this & that. (No wonder we sometimes feel MORE anxious after we’ve prayed than before we began). How often do we stop, reflect, record and thank God for what He has already DONE? How often do we just relish God’s faithfulness in our past and present?
For He has DONE so much:
- “Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good! …So the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was completed. On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation” (Genesis 1:31-2:3 NLT)
- “The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would. And Abraham named their son Isaac” (Genesis 21:1-3 NLT)
- “But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children” (Genesis 50:19-21 NLT)
- “Then Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!” (Exodus 14:21,22 NLT)
- “You came down at Mount Sinai and spoke to them from heaven. You gave them regulations and instructions that were just, and decrees and commands that were good. You instructed them concerning your holy Sabbath. And you commanded them, through Moses your servant, to obey all your commands, decrees, and instructions. You gave them bread from heaven when they were hungry and water from the rock when they were thirsty. You commanded them to go and take possession of the land you had sworn to give them” (Nehemiah 9:13-15).
- “When the servant of the man of God got up early the next morning and went outside, there were troops, horses, and chariots everywhere. ‘Oh, sir, what will we do now?’ the young man cried to Elisha. ‘Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. ‘For there are more on our side than on theirs!” Then Elisha prayed, ‘O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!’ The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire. As the Aramean army advanced toward him, Elisha prayed, ‘O Lord, please make them blind.’ So the Lord struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked” (2 Kings 6:15-18 NLT).
- “In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah. He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom: ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any of you who are his people may go to Jerusalem in Judah to rebuild this Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives in Jerusalem. And may your God be with you!” (Ezra 1:1-3 NLT).
- “So they took Jesus away. Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha). There they nailed him to the cross…he said, ‘It is finished!’ Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:16-18,30 NLT).
- “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners” (Romans 5:5 NLT).
- “They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved” (Acts 2:46, 47 NLT)
- “Christ died for us so that, whether we are dead or alive when he returns, we can live with him forever” (1 These 5:10 NLT).
- “So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever” (Hebrews 9:11,12 NLT).
Not only in ancient or world history, but in our personal history, if we recorded all that He has DONE, we would be filled with praise and thanksgiving.
So take some time today to make a “done” list – and then “go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been” (Mark 5:19 NLT). As our “done” list grows, so will our faith in God’s faithfulness.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14