I struggled quite a bit in 2021. I was faced with a lot of pressures – work, family and my health. At a point, many of my close friends commended my weight loss but didn’t know I was in a battle to control my sugar.
The lockdown in 2020 had aggravated my sugar levels and I didn’t know on time until I went for my annual wellness check. Then one day, I saw blood in my poo. When I saw it was consistent, I had to see a specialist and I ended up doing a colonoscopy.
Finally, in December, I tested positive to COVID. I was very symptomatic though I’m double vaxxed.
I faced serious burnout too at that time. Faced with deadlines at work, I was struggling to cope. I started looking forward to weekends when I could have some more rest.
Internally, I was crying for help. I felt very dry. It was like living on yesterday’s meal. I couldn’t pray well either. I knew I had to take a break somehow.
Around that time, I had a counselling session with my Pastor and our discussion informed the subject of this discourse. In a text he sent to me, he asked:
What is your present priority order of importance from the list below and what should be the right priority order of importance from the list?
Your Career
Your spouse
Your child
Your health
Your spiritual life
Your peace and joy?
I took a long time to think through his message and also examined my life. I had to be very honest with myself. I sent him a text in response after a week. My priority order at the time was:
Career
Spiritual life
My spouse
My child
Peace and joy
Health
I further responded that what I consider the right priority should be:
Spiritual life
My spouse
My child
Health
Peace and joy
Career.
Sometimes later, he called me and we had a lengthy discussion. My eyes were opened to certain realities I took for granted or probably ignored. I got my priorities wrong and there was no way that would not affect me in the long run.
You can only keep up for the short term with wrong priorities. Eventually, this choice will catch up with you and slow you down or totally take you out.
How do we restructure or reorganize our lives in such a way that what should matter most is given the best attention and not the other way? How do we live so that we can achieve balance and yet give life our best shot without any regrets? So what’s the right priority order?
1. Your health
Your health is the most important. Physical, emotional and mental health. Every other item rests on the pillar of good health.
In 3 John verse 2, John wrote: “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”
His number one desire equated good health with spiritual well-being. He was actually saying, in as much as you’re taking care of your spirit-man, don’t neglect your health.
You can’t achieve much without sound health. All your lofty dreams, great career prospects and plans will not matter again if your health is in bad shape. You need your body to fulfil the plans of God for your life here on earth.
Once you’re dead, you lose the right to continue to pursue your dreams and the plan of God on this side of the divide. Your body is what gives you the right to do all you want to do and sound health is the key.
Take good care of your body. Exercise. Eat well and eat right. I once joked with someone that when you can’t afford so many things, you will want almost every food you see but the moment you can afford almost anything you want, you discover you can’t even eat so many things.
You begin to watch your diet. Go for an annual wellness check. Watch your blood pressure. Check your blood sugar regularly. For men, check your prostate once you’re 40 and do so regularly. Ladies, check your breasts periodically. Health is wealth is not a cliche. It’s the truth.
2. Spiritual life
Your belief system is at the core of your values. What or Whom you believe in usually determines your outlook on life. Your spiritual life is the foundation for handling many issues of life including adversity.
This goes beyond mere religiosity but allows your spiritual beliefs to influence you all-round. Loving God, living for Him and serving Him makes living more fulfilling. Spending time in prayers and studying the Word consistently makes a lot of difference.
3. Peace and joy
Peace and joy are an offshoot of your health and spiritual life. Peace is not the absence of trouble. It just means there’s a calmness in the midst of the storm. Don’t allow anything to steal your peace and joy. Nothing is worth your peace and joy. Absolutely nothing. Your peace and joy come before your spouse, children, career or ministry. [Click to tweet]
4. Your spouse
Your spouse should not come before your peace and joy. And your spouse cannot be the source of your peace and joy. Marriage cannot make you happy. If you’re not happy before marriage, marriage will only amplify the unhappiness.
Happiness is an inside job. Work on helping your spouse. For the man, help her because you will give account. For the woman, support him so you can grow together.
5. Your child
Your child should never come before your spouse. Love your children but love their mother or father more. Be quick to emphasize that you’ll choose your husband or wife over and beyond your children. Role model good behaviour for them.
6. Your career
Career takes most of our time. So there is the tendency for many people to bring work home. If possible, shut down completely when you get home. For those of us who cannot afford a total shutdown because of the nature of our work, don’t take work into your bedroom. You will have to leave that career or profession one day. So it shouldn’t take precedence over your child, wife, peace and joy, spiritual life and health.
No matter how much you achieve, if you lose your child, spouse, peace and joy, spiritual life or health, you’ve lost everything. Your career should never be more important over all the aforementioned.
I am making changes so I can be better. I believe this is the greatest lesson I learned in 2021.