A Very Important List

7-23-2025

We’ve talked about this before, but like so many other things, we sometimes need a reminder………

Many people, if not most, navigate the day with some kind of prepared agenda: a to-do list, to be more specific. I get it. A to-do list is quite helpful in getting things done, keeping us on target and on track throughout the day. And, of course, it feels pretty great when we get to mark things off the list as we make progress.

However, another very important list – I would say, an equally important list – is a not-to-do list, or as I recently heard it called, a to-don’t list.

We’re usually focused on the to-do list and don’t think much about the to-don’t list. But what if today your to-don’t list looked something like this:

Today I won’t scroll endlessly on social media.
Today I won’t raise my voice to the kids (or spouse, or anyone).
Today I won’t skip Bible reading and prayer.
Today I won’t give in to temptation.
Today I won’t engage in self-pity.
Today I won’t get sidetracked by someone else’s agenda for me.

Sometimes the list will consist of actions that might be OK on other days, but this day you’re taking a break, such as putting down your phone for the afternoon or taking a day off from your hobby.

Other times the list is made up of actions and attitudes we must always avoid…..things like: I will not think these thoughts, I will not say these words, I will not entertain this idea. Two verses, both from Israel’s King David, come to mind:

In Psalm 101 King David declared: I will set no worthless thing before my eyes. (Psalm 101:3 NASB)

In Psalm 119 it became his prayer: Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word. (Psalm 119:37)

Here is where we discover the power of the list. Avoiding the don’ts gives us more time for the greatest to-do of all: seeking God’s greater presence through the life-sustaining gift of His Word.