I haven’t blogged in awhile. I even got an email one day this past week that it had been a month since I’d posted anything. That got me to thinking about a few things. 1. Just why have I been so “busy”? 2. How did anyone ever survive without their electronics emailing them and reminding them to do something? 3. There is a lot going on in the mommy world today. Would you walk with me as I go through these three items?
Why have I been so busy? As I begin contemplating this question, I realize I really have been busy. Beginning January 2014, my husband and I knew we wanted this year to look different. Our lives will be different. Our family we are creating will be different. It needs to be such a difference that people notice. Does that make sense?
I’ve had a burning desire since the early fall that something must change. I was too comfortable. Things in my life were going too smoothly. While most people would appreciate that smoothness in life, I didn’t. I don’t like to settle. I always have a goal in mind and want to attain it. I finally realized after much praying and journaling that I had a holy discontentment. God was leading us to bigger and better things–to live a holy life by example. After all, we are set apart.
So this busy-ness I find myself in, really isn’t busy per se. It is more like a change of focus. My husband and children get the best of me, not the left overs. I make intentional time for God daily. I make intentional time to get to the gym at least 4-5 days a week. I make intentional decisions to only check Facebook for notifications. I actually hid a lot of profiles from my timeline because I want to be exposed to only those people and things that are positive and uplifting to me. I‘ve stopped watching the news for news.
Isn’t this just like us though as moms? We spread ourselves so thin. We think we must do it all or we aren’t worthy. We find ourselves worried about what our husbands will think of our housekeeping skills or ability to throw a nutritious dinner on the table every night. Worry about what our children, when they are adults, will think of how we mothered them. We worry about how long it has been since we’ve had a girls night or returned a dear friend’s phone call.
I don’t want that anymore. I am making intentional changes to just be who God says I am. I am a masterpiece. He created me, knowing exactly how I would glorify Him. He knew He needed me to do a specific task or multiple tasks just for Him and His kingdom. Being a wife and mother are just two things I was created for, and I intend to obey Him and place my focus where it needs to be.
The way God has blasted it in my face is that I only have 18 short years of my life to shape the minds of our children. Really that number is shorted because by the time a child is about 10 or 11, they are pretty much who they will be and have shaped their personalities to be where they will be the rest of their lives. Think about it– look at yourself when you were 10 or 11. Saved or unsaved, it doesn’t matter. Do you still see yourselves doing the same types of behaviors and things you did back then? Maybe you surround yourself with the same types of friends you had back then. Maybe it is you see you have the same motivations as you did back then. It is so true of me. I still struggle with being people pleaser, perfectionist, striving for more. It’s just that my focus has changed as I’ve grown and become saved. Think about that one for a minute!
If you find yourself stuck in a smooth life, what do you do? What will you do? Will you join me on never settling? Always striving for better, more holy?
(#2 and #3 will be saved for future posts. Please come back and check out the updates!)
