If you read the blog yesterday you know that I started off having a "Too Much" kind of day. I felt overwhelmed by everything I had to do. After some time of reflection and prayer I was able to remember that I am not the one in control and when I give it up to God, he is able to do amazing things with my life.
That realization did not make my day any less busy, but it did help to give me perspective and it opened my mind and my heart to looking at things differently. I was talking to a friend in the afternoon and he said that he has been under a great deal of spiritual warfare this past week. For the first few days he was feeling intense frustration because he did not realize what was going on. Then after he had a chance to be still with God for a while he realized that he was under attack. Once he was aware of that it changed his perspective. It has not changed the fact that he continues to be going through a very challenging time, in fact it has increased since, but knowing what is happening is helping him realize what the big picture implications are and his attitude about it is now one of love and humility. He knows that his suffering is for the glory and honor of God.
When I woke up this morning I instantly realized that my attitude was much improved over what it had been yesterday morning. Once I reminded myself that I am here for God and not to serve my own interests, I was freed from the anxiety of being a "know-it-all." I was able to move on with the rest of my day yesterday with joy. I actually began to enjoy the Return of My Routine. Until mid-day yesterday I didn't even realize that I had been missing it, I mean REALLY missing it.
As a mom of three kids I try to make summers fun for them. They are in a few activities but I make every effort to have it be a relaxing and stress free time. We allow our schedules to become more relaxed and we take time to enjoy the small moments. At the beginning of summer that is exactly what we need. But by the end, we are all needing a return to our routines and schedules. It is nice to get a break from them but they also ground us, anchor us, keep us rotating in the same orbit.
There is a discombobulated time, it is between the first few weeks of school and the start of the fall activities, that always sets me silly. We are starting to get back into a routine but we are not fully there yet. We are finding our new groove for the new school year, new activities, new time frames, new responsibilities, new friends. And then sometime in mid-September it all jells. I never really see it coming, and now that I think about it, it usually happens a day or two after I get extremely frustrated with the "adjustment weeks," and then it all settles into place.
I am there now. That settled place of knowing what our fall schedule is, well for the most part anyway, and I know what other people need from me and what I am able to provide. I am comfortable enough with the foundation of our new routine that I will be able to adjust to what might change. I am reminded that my responsibility, in the grand scheme, is to make myself available to serve in the areas God needs me to, and many of those areas will be where God has already positioned me according to the schedule and routine He has laid out for me.
So what does your schedule and routine have you doing? How are you using it to glorify God? What impact are you making on your family, on others, on yourself as you move through your activities and responsibilities? What is your attitude as you are out in the world being "busy?" Are you showing, not just saying, you are a Christ-follower?
My prayer for today is for each of us to find the joy in our routines. I pray that we are able to allow God to direct our schedule and to place us in the areas He needs us to be. I pray that we are able to recognize the work He is asking us to do and that we serve Him with love and humility. I pray that when life feels overwhelming, we are able to get quiet with God and ask Him to help us right-size our priorities. I pray that we are mindful of our time and create schedules and routines that leave time for God, our family, and ourselves.
Until We Meet Again,
Drea
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