Do the next thing. It’s been a guiding principle in my life since I was a teenager. (Thank you, Elisabeth Elliot, for passing on the wisdom of the Poet.)

When I feel stuck, when I don’t know what to do next, when I face overwhelm or decision fatigue, these words come back to me: Do the next thing. 

– What is right in front of me, today? 
– What needs, whose needs, do I need to meet today?
– What is the next right thing? 
(That last one arrived in my life via author and spiritual director Emily P. Freeman.)

These questions are all about being sensitive to where the Spirit is leading me in this moment. They ask me to be present to people, to pay attention to what is going on around me right now. And they have helped me out of stuck places, confused places, anxious places.

I need to think near.

But if I’m not careful, thinking near can take up all my time and brain power, which is very much reduced right now in midlife.

So I also need to think far. 

I need time to contemplate. To envision the future, to imagine new paths, new projects. To let my soul settle and find that creative spark. To expand my understanding, to see with spiritual eyes. And to seek the best ways to use my limited energy.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 13:22, “The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced.”

And in Luke 21:34-36a, He warns, “Watch out! Don’t let your hearts be dulled by carousing and drunkenness, and by the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times.”

I know I can all too easily allow the message of grace to be crowded out by the worries of this life and so produce less fruit. I can all too easily let my heart be dulled by the worries of this life and become unable to see the bigger picture.

Taking the time to think far is the antidote to the worries of everyday life. It allows us to make long-term dreams and plans. It helps us to see the trials happening now in light of eternity and the sanctification God is forging in our life. And it gives us the sense of peace and calm to keep asking for and doing the next right thing.

So remember to think near. And remember to think far. But most of all, remember to think about the God who watches over near and far—the one who sings over us, the one who’s always with us, the one who whispers from behind and tells us the way we should go.