Monday, July 9, 2012

The Best of Intentions

For those of you still checking the site after my horrendously long and unplanned break, I sincerely appreciate your loyalty! I hope mommy hood has been a blessing to each and every one of you these past two weeks, and I pray that the Lord has met you wherever you might be in your journey with Him. He certainly has at our house.

After a scary few days, I am blessed to report that all is well at our home and in our town. The fire is nearly 100% contained and is no longer doing any damage. While 346 homes were destroyed with countless others damaged, and two people lost their lives, the glory of God has shown through this atrocity brighter than anyone could have imagined. From the officials giving thanks to God on national television, to a newspaper reporter writing that it was ultimately God who protected every person fighting this fire, there is no mistaking that He is the ultimate Protector and our ultimate Ally in any fight that may, and will, come our way.

My post title today is two-fold. While I had the best of intentions to study the Word, spend time in prayer, and write while we were on our impromptu family vacation to Kansas, it simply didn't happen. My husband traveled for work, and I hopped from one parent's house to the next with a toddler and two dogs in tow. I was exhausted, no one was on a routine (unheard of in our house!), and I was doing my best to handle some family drama at home while maintaining some normalcy for our son. I had some fantastic insights and lessons throughout the week that I will discuss eventually, but for now, I unashamedly revel in gratefulness that two weeks that could have been absolutely terrible for my family were honestly, no big deal. That certainly isn't the same for many other families affected by this fire, and for them, my heart breaks. But, He is faithful. He will provide a multitude of resources far beyond those asked, He will provide supernatural strength and courage for those who need it the most, and His glory will shine in this story for years to come. I am absolutely sure of it.

The second reason for my post title is for all of us as mommies, SAHM or otherwise. Isn't it true that almost everyone has the best of intentions each day? Unless you are a seasoned career criminal, I bet you don't wake up and think, "I'm going to try my absolute best to have the worst day ever, get nothing done, be a blessing to no one, serve no one, hate every circumstance about my life, and give absolutely no effort to any challenge or task that comes my way." Am I right? But how often do we, as mommies, lay in bed at night and make a mental list of everything we did wrong or could have done better that day. In mommy hood, there will often be messes that were not cleaned up, friends we didn't call back, lines of tasks that did not get crossed out, husbands left feeling lonely, eating habits that were less than stellar, and children who did not learn quite as much as we would hope. These thoughts equate a mental hamster wheel that will not stop when we should be peacefully entering our precious few hours of dream land. Try meditating on Psalm 46:10...

"Be still, and know that I am God..."

Take the time to be still in Him. He knows that we aren't perfect. He knows that there are plenty of ways that we mess up each day. But, ultimately, He knows that we try. And, He loves us so very much. Focus on the truths that:
  • He made you His daughter
  • He gave you your life, and 
  • He made you a mother. 
Those three gifts are enough to quiet any hamster wheel.

Be blessed, mommies. Check back tomorrow for a new posting and all-new MMSM and Organizational Tips. As always, thank you for reading :-)

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