Seasons

When was the last time you held a baby only hours old? I was blessed with the opportunity just this last week as I was able to be with my sister and brother-in-law for the birth of their new baby. Having four of my own children and having been with my sister for the birth of both her children, the awesomeness of these events just becomes more breathtaking each time. It doesn’t diminish in any way...I am only left in awe of God’s creation and His love.

I don’t know if this is true for every mother but for me it was most difficult to go from one baby to two. With the first one there was time to sleep when they slept, time to sit and enjoy feeding them and rock them to sleep. With baby number one you thought you knew what exhaustion was but now with number two you really get to find out. You are awake all day with your older child counting down the hours until naptime where you are praying that the new baby will be sleeping so that you can catch a few minutes of rest. You are awake all night with that precious new baby who hasn’t yet figured out that nighttime is for sleeping. There are dishes and laundry piling up and a bathroom that…well…maybe we shouldn’t even go there.

My point is that I was there and when I was there I would think about all those books that I used to have time to read. All those books that told me to have a quiet time every morning, study my bible, pray, to be a good wife and mom. AHHHHHH………… It just all made me wanna cry or scream or do both. I remember telling my husband once, “you know what would be nice, is if a women who actually has babies could tell me how to fit all this in.” It wasn’t that all these other women had never had babies because they did, they too had been where I was, but when you are in the forest all you see are the trees.

I look back on those days and what I did was cope and adjust. My mornings were no longer quiet they were feeding babies, crying babies, changing diapers and wondering if I was going to get to shower and if I did would I have to skip washing my hair or shaving my legs. There was no way I was getting up earlier than my kids because I was exhausted and lucky if I got 3 hours of sleep in a row.

Oswald Chambers said, “Never make a principle out of your experiences, let God be as original with other people as He is with you.” And that is what I did… I let God be original with me. I took the principles that I had learned; that it is important to spend time with God in quiet, study my Bible and pray and well…I had to get creative. When I nursed I would read, give the other children a book or have them watch a short video. Occasionally, they would lose interest and loving that mommy was preoccupied do something like play in the toilet. I also started writing scripture on index cards and putting them everywhere in my house or in my pockets. I was then able to memorize and meditate on scripture while doing dishes, showering, or putting on makeup. Laundry time became my designated prayer time. I could fold and pray and eventually that just flowed over into everything I did, I prayed all the time. And as far as quiet time goes… I took it when I could get it everyday was different.

photo found here

My reason for sharing this is because life has many seasons, babies is just one of them and the important thing is that we do come to Jesus, that we learn about Him, that our faith grows and that our relationship with Him strengthens in each of those seasons. The principles of spending time in quiet with God, reading His word and praying aren’t going to change but our methods of how we do them may change. And you know… that’s okay. It took me awhile to get that. I was putting myself under a law that I had created, not God. Beating myself up for not doing things the way I thought they should be done. I was making the method the principle.

I watch my sister, I listen to her tell me about her struggles but I know she will make it out all right to the other side of the forest. It is just that sometimes those trees are redwoods; we are exhausted and the thought of there being another side is at times inconceivable.

I want to encourage you this week to let God be original with you. Get creative if you are struggling to get time with God. This blog is to encourage moms, you have access to seven moms for sure...in addition to anyone else reading. If you could use some help getting creative, share your struggle in the comments and ask for some creative solutions. You are not alone, let other moms come alongside you to encourage and help you in your journey to a better relationship with Christ.

" Therefore encourage one another and build each other up..."

1 Thessalonians 5:11