Journey to a Gracious Woman

Time management…that has been such a struggle of mine lately. Just like our money, I do think we need to be frugal with our time and spend is wisely. I know I don’t devote as much time as I should to certain areas of house keeping, mothering and time alone with Jesus. These are all very serious areas to be lacking time in. Somehow I find myself at the computer too long, without the discipline to get up and do my duties. It’s like a magnet! I try to keep my activities limited so that I am not spending more and more time, but even doing that, I’ll find a reason to stay on. I hate it because I don’t like being selfish. It’s like Paul said,

“..for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very
thing I hate.” (Romans 7:15)

I am eating the bread of idleness.

Sad thing is, when I am up and keeping busy doing things for my home and family, I end the day feeling so productive and satisfied. When I don’t do those things, I end the day feeling guilty and upset with myself for wasting a whole day. I do it all too often and it’s like I never learn from my mistake. Just like Jesus said,

“Mark 14:38 (NLT) For though the spirit is willing enough, the body is
weak.”

If I want to be more like Jesus, I need to follow the leading of the Spirit and not my own flesh. I desire to do the things He asks, but I am weak because I allow myself to only think of myself.

Like everything else, time management comes down to one thing: obedience. When I feel the pulling to get up and do my duties, I need to do it. Every time I do, it will be that much easier to do the next time, because I will surrender that to Jesus and He will be the one living in that aspect of my life, not my flesh. Make sense?

If you are struggling today dear one, surrendar that problem to Jesus by being obedient…over and over again. Allow Him to live in you by resisting the devil and resisting your own flesh. It will become weak as Jesus takes over!

Take the time today to read Romans 7:14-25. It talks about these two conflicting natures. Pray on it, meditate on it. Ask Jesus to help you live it out.

You know, even God rested on the 7th day. So why do we, as wives and mothers, feel like we always have to be on the “go”? Service to the Lord is wonderful and honoring to God, but what good is it if you sacrifice your time spent with Him? We can’t afford to let our time with the Lord fall by the way side. How will we know what He wants of us if we don’t go listen to Him? It’s not much different then a relationship with our husbands!!

They are trying to tell us something we want to know and we’re not listening. For example, you wonder what your husband wants for dinner. He comes up behind you and tells you softly he wants Filet Mignon, but you can’t hear him because you are running back and forth doing this and that, yet your husband does not move. He calls your name, but still you can’t hear him in the midst of yelling at the kids, or the dog. Then you start to fix dinner, making pork chops and you are so pleased with the way dinner turned out. You set it on the table with pride and accomplishment and your husband looks a little down. You ask, “What’s wrong, honey?” He replies, “Oh I wanted Filet Mignon.” You snap back, “Well, you didn’t ask for Filet Mignon”, dh says, “Yes I did. Didn’t you hear me?”, “No you didn’t!” And, well, you can go on and on with that scenario.

The point is, God is calling our name, telling us what He wants from us–to rest and be with Him, and because we are too busy “running”, while He is still waiting in the quiet place for us to listen, we didn’t hear Him. So what we think we did or are doing is great, God had something better in mind. And we miss it.

Think back to the story of Mary and Martha. Mary sat at Jesus’ feet, listening to His Word while He was there. Martha worked in the kitchen and complained that Mary wasn’t helping her. Jesus repremanded Martha for worrying over such minute things! He told Martha that Mary had chosen the good thing and would not take it away from her (Luke 10:38-42).

When Jesus comes to visit, go visit with Him! Don’t ignore Him. When you feel Him drawing you, stop what you’re doing and go. Put the kids in quiet time and go!

How will you know? Well, something will tell you, “Come, spend time with me”. You may think it’s your own thoughts or conscience at first….but it’s the Spirit, drawing you. Don’t ignore Him.

“For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall surely be put to death.” Exodus 31:15

Seems to me God is serious about rest. Thankfully Jesus died for our sins so that God would not cast us down for disobeying Him!

Heed His voice friend. Go to Him. He’s calling you.

Ever noticed how things are much easier when life is made simple? If we don’t clutter our lives with unnecessary things, it’s more manageable and more fulfilling?

The same is true in our homes, too. Our homes are much more manageable when we have less STUFF and keep things organized. The more stuff we have, the more time we have to spend cleaning, rearranging and organizing it. Not to mention, it’s easier to get lost in it when we should be spending time with Jesus on a daily basis. How can we do that if we are always tending to “stuff”. If we are bombarded with things like cleaning nik naks? Maintaining clutter we don’t use or need? Drowning in paper work that is out of control?

What about hobbies? I like to read, for example, and I have a problem starting too many books at once and not getting threw them. Then I feel overwhelmed with reading and disappointed because I didn’t accomplish anything. How can I enjoy my hobby to read and keep it simple? By reading ONE book at a time, and read it when I have the time. I don’t have to get through it in a certain amount of time. Instead, I can really soak up what I’m reading and apply it to my life a little at a time.

What are some ways to simply your life? The more stuff we get involved in, the more we have to maintain. How about the internet?

I like the internet..there are different pages I enjoy regularly and sometimes I drown myself in different groups I really don’t have time for. Or sign up for all kinds of devotionals I can’t keep up with. I can only read so much and take in so much in one day. If you struggle with this, too, choose one devotional that you favor most and stick with it. Don’t just read it, apply it. It will make your time reading it more worth your while.

Pick 3 areas in your life you can simplify — and do it! Take out things that are sucking up your time with little reward or fruit. Get rid of it…and then DON’T fill it with something else! Leave it open so you have room to breathe! To spend time with Jesus, which is something most of us lack…me most of all.

Make a change today. Right now. Take the time and eliminate three items that aren’t producing fruit in your life.

“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

Why is it so easy to lose sight of those things which are important? How is it I can totally forget something that was so important to me days or weeks or even months earlier? Like the commitment of prayer you made for someone or how important it was just days ago to keep up with the routines so the house doesn’t become overwhelming? Or spending quality time with your children or trying to be more patient with them and keep a proper tone? How is it from day to day these things are forgotten so easily? How about time with Jesus? Commitments to stay away from tv…this can change within hours!

Oh, I think it’s coming to me~

Lack of discipline.

We lack discipline. We are very quick to discipline our children when they mess up or even judge others when they mess up. But what about US. What about disciplining ourselves? How is it we came to lack this trait so much that we can’t even put it back in to the mix?

I think one problem is we overcommit and become overwhelmed trying to prioritize what’s most important. So first thing to do, perhaps, is reevaluate everything going on in our lives. I mean everything. All the pleasure seeking activities we do, to right down to the amount of sleep we get. Everything. I think we do too much “entertaining” for ourselves, to tell you the truth. We have TV, computer, reading, telephone, sleeping in, shopping, eating, drinking, all kinds of things that consume our time and energies probably more than they should. It’s an addiction. The urge hits us so bad, we can’t resist. We can’t say no. We have to have it or we’ll go threw withdrawls. It inevitebly turns into a life about “us”, even when we’re not trying to make it that way.

Ok, so the problem is out there, now how in the world do we begin to fix it?!

I guess this is just on my heart right now…can anyone else relate to what I’m saying? Please share.
Christin