Sandy's Mom's Corner
Hi,
It's me, Sandy. It's that time again. Time for moms to get back into gear for the second half of the school year. If you're like me, a homeschool mom (aka teacher) you have to stifle a sigh. The time off was so nice. I am so amazed (as always) at how time goes by so fast.
It may be a little different for you moms of kids in school. Maybe what you're sighing over is no longer having that close time with your kids or being able to let them sleep in. Now it's hurry out the door. (Or maybe it's a sigh of relief to get back on the schedule).
Back to normal. I find I fight against normal. Normal is so....average. So "daily grind"ish. So I've been asking myself, 'How do I make normal better? How do I serve the God who created me and plopped me right in the middle of this (by most standards) privileged life during the normal times?'
I guess that's why so many of us make New Year's Resolutions. I did. Of course, after the usual, eat better, lose weight declarations, I decided on two ways to really challenge myself. Feel free to join me in the challenge:.
First, I'm going to turn my least favorite task into a form of worship. Dishes. When I was little I begged to do the dishes...what was I thinking? I can't believe my mother didn't whip an apron on me, give me a foot stool, and say, "See ya when you're done kid..or thirty, whichever comes first." I waited years to be able to do them.
I can honestly say I have now fulfilled my dream of dish-washing (uh, yeah, about 15 years ago). It's not so much the task itself, but the sheer volume of them. They are never ending. I joke that one day I heard them calling for me and I asked them who they were and they answered, "Legion for we are many." Just kidding. Don't really think they're demonic. Didn't really hear them calling (FYI).
Currently, our dishwasher is not working. (My husband asserts that, with a dishwasher you have to wash them before and after they're washed anyway. Although I totally denied this at the time, I've found there to be more truth than I'm comfortable with in that statement.)
So, this year I've decided to turn doing the dishes into a form of worship. Not worshiping the dishes of course, but worshiping God while I do them. So, instead of grumbling when someone sets down another dish, I've been singing, praying for people on my mind or trying to remember memory verses I'm working on. So far it's going better. Not perfect, I'll admit, but better. I may not have a "War Room" but, as of this year, I do have a "war sink."
Secondly, I'm working on making a couple key verses part of my life. It's really hard for me to do, but the times I can remember them really helps me control my frustrations. I'm asking God to help me put into practice James 1:19,20:
19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath. 20 for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. KJV (emphasis mine).
The second verse really brings it home doesn't it? No matter what the offense, the wrath of man does not accomplish God's righteousness. Ouch!
I was at a homeschool mom meeting and the hostess challenged us, not with a New Year's resolution, but to think about how we were going to love our family better this year. I realized that my number two commitment was the answer. I confess I was doodling during that meeting (I know it's rude; next year's list) and I noticed that an ear kind of looks like half a heart; so if I can listen with my two ears, perhaps I'll be better to communicate love without my two lips getting in the way.
How about you? How can you make your least favorite task a form of worship? Or do you want to share how you can love others better this year? Comment in the section below. Feel free to share your favorite verse on the subject as well.