Mommy time

Today was the first day of a growth group I lead called Mommy Matters.  Actually it was the first day of this semester.  My church has many different growth groups you can plug into and each semester brings new groups, or continue with ones that are awesome!  This group is one of those ones that has continued for about two years now!  I have been co-leading it with my dear friend Stephanie and it's so much fun and rewarding. 

Previously Stephanie  has been leading the group and asked if I would take the lead this time as she has so much going on with family it was a little too much.  So of course I would!  I mean I really was sharing the responsibility anyway so why not? 

I had no idea how nervous I would be!  Stephanie is so gifted at talking to a group of women that I didnt know how in the world I would be able to speak about something meaningful without reading straight from my notes.  When I speak in public my face and neck can turn red and my hands shake and my voice cracks and my train of thought goes out the window leaving me to look and feel like a ditzy blonde :)

So I prayed so hard that I would have the words, and asked a friend or two to pray for me too.  And today could not have gone better!   I made Proverbs 31 memory verse cards for the women to keep with them as words of encouragement.  To remind them of how strong and important they are in the eyes of the Lord and their families!

I talked about the importance of taking time to yourself and having a quiet time every day to just reset and be reminded that God is in control, and you are not defined by your children.

Being a mother is by far the hardest job I've ever had. And I think we can all agree that it's also the most rewarding! When you are given the privilege of raising a child it comes with great responsibility. So much so it can start to take over everything about yourself.

Most people have jobs and work full time before starting a family. Whether its just a job, or your career that you spent years of schooling for, it can in a way define you. It's what you do the majority of your time. But you're able to leave it at the end of the day, or weekends, and come back to it refreshed and ready to start again. So it doesn't consume you. Hopefully.

Then when you make the decision to stay home to raise your kids you have the same mindset that this is your job. It's what you do, it takes up the majority of your time.... Wait ALL YOUR TIME. We rarely get those breaks. theres no such thing as nights and weekends off! But you don't notice at first because you're so wrapped up in how amazing it is to love such a precious gift. You never knew you could feel that way about anything at all.

As time goes on your child can quickly become all you know. That's what you talk about to your friends, your spouse, it's who you pray for, who you feed, change, hold, entertain, EVERYTHING! You are spending time with other moms, and wanting to show off all your hard work. The house should be clean! The baby should be happy and hitting all the milestones, your husband is helping all the time!

And then you start to compare. You see the gifts of other mothers that you wish you had and they do the same of you. I wish my house was always that clean. I wish my husband would take turns at night. I wish I had her energy to be able to go workout. How come I cant get great pictures of my kid? I'm not cooking enough. I'm not couponing. Im not able to breastfeed, etc etc.

We want people to see the fruits of our labor and be praised for it like a real job! But this job is different, and the person you're working so hard for is God. This is the assignment He gave you. It's His to judge and praise. But we won't know how we are doing until we meet with Him and take some time to just BE. Remember who YOU are. And who He made YOU to be.

Everyone is different in what me time includes. Maybe having time to just read your bible and pray in the morning before you face the day is best for you. Or if mornings are too hectic, evenings after they are in bed.. Or perhaps reading the bible alone doesn't really speak to you and you need group discussion, so it's better for you to have a bible study! Or meaningful conversation with a friend. Or if you just have to be moving, your time is a run, or workout. Or journaling your thoughts and prayers.

Or maybe you haven't figured out what's best for you! Or each day is different. Try something new until you figure out what works best. It doesn't matter how you do it. Just make sure to do it every day. Because it is so easy to start losing yourself and finding your identity in your kids instead of in Christ.

My challenge for you is if you don't already do this, look at your daily routines, what's most important to you? Is it making sure your house is clean? Is it getting a workout in? Is it learning something new like sewing? Whatever you feel is most important to you and your family, put those at the top of your priority list. Then put quiet time above that. Then everything else that used to feel so important wont seem so anymore and you will be so much more at peace knowing you accomplished exactly what God had planned for you that day. Even if that day only included quiet time and then a movie Marathon! When you take the time to really rest in Him and ask for help you can accomplish anything.

But remember you can't do it ALL! Not even proverbs 31 wife did it all. She had maidens! :)

What do you do for quiet time? What keeps you from having one every day?