Proper Margin

I recently read an article on the lack of margin people have in their lives - how they live to the edge financially, with their time, etc.  I know this dates me, but I remember having to type a paper and having to set my own margins on the typewriter. Now, my documents are automatically set for me when I use my computer. Wouldn't THAT be lovely?...to have built-in margin? But it doesn't seem to work that way in life.

For the most part, we get to choose our margin. It's a blessing to be able to do that. I love the freedom that it brings. But there are times when I compare my margin to someone else's and am left feeling inadequate. I see that some people seem to live to the edge and think that I should be doing more...that I should be falling into bed at night exhausted...that I should be giving it all away.

But, maybe what I fail to see is that the dimensions of my paper aren't as big as that other persons, that they have the proper margins for their life. If my paper is a 3"x5" and another's is 8 1/2"x11"  then there is no way we should have the same margin. So, when I judge someone by saying "They are way too busy" or "They are way too lazy" I am assuming that I know the dimensions that they are working with...and I don't.

I want healthy margins for my life. I certainly don't want my life to be ALL margin...I want my life be filled with the pursuit of God's plan for me. And I certainly don't want my life to have NO margin...I don't want to burn the candle at both ends. I've found (using my Bible as an example) that it's in the margins that God speaks to me, where He can make notes, where He can write the rhema of the logos for me, personally.

I think different seasons of life demand different margin. If I try to apply a set margin to the entirety of my life, I will end up in error. I'll end up too busy or too lazy. I need to allow a shift in my margins with the changes in my life. AND I need to allow God to set the margins for me. If He says "Scale back" or if He says "Go for it", I need to be ready and willing to make the adjustment. I can't live in fear of what others may think or of how they will judge my margin. Nor, should I be quick to judge another's use or lack of it. Instead, I'm going to allow God to set my margins AND to fill up all the other space with what He has for me.