I'm the type that flies by the seat of her pants. I have never been a planner, I
can not remember a time in my life where I have felt organized or as if I had my
"ducks in a row." When you're on your own, it's not too big of a deal. You are
the only one that you're truly responsible for as a single gal and if you want
to decorate your floor with your mixture of clean and dirty clothes and choose
to pretend that you don't have a closet or chest of drawers that is your thing.
But as a married woman, and a mom, it's just not practical.
I've found
myself spinning about in life lately. It's as if the daily happenings are a
tornado that I am stuck in the middle of. I take it with me everywhere I go, and
I leave each place dizzier than the last. At first, I thought I could handle it,
after all, it's the way I've done life for as long as I can remember. But now
that I've been carrying on like this for a while, I see the real problems that
are arising.
On the surface, it looks to me like a messy house, a hectic
schedule, a lack of routine and too little time. Delve a little deeper into the
realm and see that the truth is it's confusion, laziness and the desire to
please everyone.
Not long ago, I stepped out of the role as a full-time
working mom and into the role of full-time mom, part-time worker. I felt in my
heart that I needed to stop saying yes to everyone else all the time and start
saying yes to my family instead. It was life changing. I knew that God was
calling me to this and I stepped in obedience. I did just what my track record
would suggest...I went at it full forced to start with, feeling incredibly
fulfilled and proud of every sink of dishes I would wash (dishes are my nemesis)
and every meal I prepared and cooked for my sweet husband and child. And then
the novelty wore off. Instead of spending the time while my daughter napped
tidying up the house and getting things prepared for dinner, I plopped myself
down on the couch and cuddled up to Netflix.
These days it's not much
different, though there's a lot more hurrying to get somewhere rather than
staying at home. I am absolutely thankful for so many of the opportunities that
I have and the provisions that God has orchestrated. But I know that my
priorities have gotten out of wack. Maybe you've been feeling the same way
lately, not necessarily due to the same circumstances, but just out of plain
busy-ness and lack of preparation.
It's time to start being
intentional. Intentional: done on purpose; deliberate.
It's so
simple. I've heard the word so many times, and lately it seems that I've heard
it more and more in conversations with others. I just never took the time to
really listen to what God was showing me.
We have to be intentional with
the way we spend our days, every minute, every second, because the moments are
fleeting. Getting organized and having a game plan for the way you intend to
spend your day is a must. I've always thought that it was pointless to make
plans because God is in control, and while He is, I think that it's foolish to
think that He doesn't desire for us to have some sort of expectations. Now I'm
not saying start planning out every detail of every day, but don't just go into
it all lazy and think that Facebook won't eat up every bit of half of your day.
I'm talking to myself here. But I'm hoping it's helping someone else too.
While our days are numbered, and The Lord has a plan, we also need to
set goals for what we hope for our future to look like. And it doesn't matter if
you're young or old, you can still have a dream.
Don't just bump along each day
waiting for something to change. Make the change, and watch as God perfects it.