Mom Heart Moments #318

In the day of prosperity be happy, but in the day of adversity consider —God has made the one as well as the other.

BEING A MAMA IS A LONG-TERM COMMITMENT, isn’t it? When I find myself depleted, I try to stop and take stock of what is going on in my life. I place the worries and anxieties in heaven. I simplify my schedule, plan a snack-style dinner of crackers and cheese or fruit and toast, and break out the paper plates. I take a day off from regular commitments and plan to be still. The next day, I again put away normal commitments, but this time in order to attack the demanding tasks that are increasing my burden. Planning other simple pleasures —making time for several cups of coffee or tea, having a nap, watching a show, or reading a magazine —helps too.

When my children were little, on burned-out days, I would do whatever would free me for just a time: let the kids blow bubbles, give them a long bath with new toys, let them watch a Winnie-the-Pooh cartoon, take them to the frozen yogurt café, or make a quick jaunt to the park or playground. I crafted a way I might have a break from the banter and demands of my day.

Refueling just a little, to find joy, create pleasure, and celebrate life in the midst of all the demands, helped fill my heart up just enough to begin seeing light at the end of my tunnel. Slowly but surely, I would begin to see the miracles bubbling up. My Father delights to provide when I take time to breathe, listen, and rest from the daily grind.

A woman with a Martha heart, frenetically busy, won’t see the miracles of God, as she is so busy living in the whirlwind of her own making and subsisting in her own meek provisions that she loses all hope and becomes a wretched nag. Sitting at the feet of Jesus instead, and just having some respite, will do wonders to change the day.

How do you incorporate joy-breaks into your own stressful days?