I have such great intentions…I mean really great ones. I intend
to get up early in the morning and have my meals planned out each day. I intend to be patient with my kids and
cheerful with my husband all the time I
intend for each school day to go smoothly and to have fun and creative things
planned for the kids so that they just LOVE it. I intend to not let the laundry pile up ever again. I intend to have a really clean house with
all of the toys organized and put away in their proper places at the end of
each day. I intend to never let that
piles of things build up on the kitchen counter AGAIN.
I intend to be that super mom who can just….do it all. I want to be all of those things I mentioned and
so much more here at home, and I also want to get involved with things. I want
my kids to see me serving the Lord by doing
things. There are so many ways that I
can do that - women's bible studies, women's missionary circles, MOPS, visiting
shut-ins who need cheering up, inviting someone new at church over for a meal,
going door-to-door to invite people to church.
There are just so many things
that I could do!
Those are my wonderful and well planned intentions. Here is the reality…I don't get up early
because I stayed up late catching up on housework, painting signs for my
business, and being up with my sweet little night owl Paul 6 times throughout the
night. I end up realizing that the meat
I needed to be thawed for dinner is still frozen…at 5pm. I grow rather impatient around the 317th time
I have heard "Mommy?" during the day.
I take out my tiredness on my husband.
My school days rarely go as planned and crafts and fun activities go out
the window just so that we can get through the basics. I always have mountains of laundry either
needing to be washed or needing to be folded, and the toys…oh, the toys. If the insurance company could see my house,
they would drop us like a hot potato because of all the toy hazards that are
lying around my house on a daily basis. I have been very nearly killed by many a truck
at the bottom of a dark stairway…and those Legos and tiny tractors - my feet
have been impaled by them more times than I can count. And then there is the constant pile of papers,
toys that need to be fixed, coloring pages, and pretty rocks that are always
piling up on my kitchen countertops.
As it turns out…raising kids is hard work. It is exhausting. With 5
kids ages 8 years down to 8 months, just thinking
about going somewhere wears me out. It
takes me more time to get everyone ready and get out the door and loaded into
the car than it does to actually grocery shop.
A trip to the library is an all-day affair. There is something to do at home to fill every
single hour of every single day.
Diapers, sippy cups, training, correcting, math problems, reading books,
dishes, loving, kisses and snuggles, meals, housework, playtime…the list is
absolutely endless. Which leaves me with this dilemma…
There is no way I can fit in those super mom activities. The women's bible studies, the missionary
circles, the MOPS groups, the visiting, the door-to-door visiting….I can't seem
to do any of it. And not being able to
do any of it has left me feeling like I am just not doing enough for the
Lord. I am not doing enough to get involved and serve. I have so much to do
at home that I have no time to give myself to others. How am I supposed to be a good example of a
servant for the Lord to my children if I have no time to be one? I asked the Lord…."Where is my mission field?" Missionaries go and serve the Lord in foreign
countries and I can't even make it to a women's meeting. Most Sundays I can't even make it through a
sermon without my little guy needing me.
"What can I do to serve the
Lord and be a good example to my children?"
And then I looked at these precious little ones that God has
entrusted to my care and I realized. This is my mission field.
I am in the middle of it every day. Teaching and training these little hearts for
the Lord is the mission that He has so graciously given me. Why am I looking for more things to fill my
time when the biggest and most important task is in front of me each day,
looking to me for guidance? If I become involved in activities serving the
Lord outside my home and don’t leave enough time to disciple my own children's
hearts, I will fail at the most important task the Lord has given me.
So right now, today, I can't go to meetings. You probably won't see me door-to-door
calling. I can't do much visiting or
entertaining, but here is what I can do.
I can read the Bible with my children and help them hide it
in their little hearts. I can tell them
Bible stories and sing songs with them about God's love. I can teach them character lessons and help
them to see the type of person that God wants them to be. I can demonstrate God's love for them by
caring for their needs…cooking meals, changing diapers, comforting them when they are hurt, correcting them when needed,
listening attentively to their stories.
I can serve my family joyfully and without complaint and model for them
what a servant's heart should look like.
I can do my best to know their hearts so that I can continue to guide
them as they grow. I can help them see that they are sinners in
need of a Savior. I can be an example
to them of how a Christian should live and behave.
When I really stop and think about what the most important
thing is for me to do in this life…the little things all fade away. In the end it will not matter how clean my
house was (thank goodness), which meetings I attended, what activities we were
involved in, and that we did cute crafts and cool science experiments. Although it is still important for me to take
opportunities to share the gospel and serve whenever I can, during this stage
of my life I know that what is most important is right in front of me right now…the
children that the Lord gave me to raise for His glory.
What I want more than anything is to know that I did everything
possible to ensure that my children love and serve the Lord and do it with
their whole hearts. I want to know that
I did all that I could do to win their little hearts for Him. I want to see them in heaven someday. THIS
is my mission field, and I am so very blessed to serve the Lord here.
** Image is of a set of signs I painted for my son's room. You can purchase them in my Etsy shop here. I love putting reminders on my walls - and this is a great one to keep me focused on the most important lessons I need to teach each day!
