Do You Have Balance in Your Life?

My husband often shares with me videos from Darren Hardy when he thinks it is something I might find interesting. One day a few week ago he set me on titled "Life Balance is a Crock"

The thought in the video was a challenge that balance in life is something we chase after and never achieve. I have spent years trying to find the ultimate balance for life. I find many days I sit down after dinner with a cup of tea and see a clean house, loving husband, my child contentedly doing her homework, no one from work emailing with a problem and the dog quietly taking a nap. HA HA HA HA! I can not recall that ever happening. I am always feeling like I am not doing enough, there is always some where I should be cleaning, some one I should be spending more time with, and always too many things on my check off list, I wish I had never put on the list in the first place!

On vacation - yes my little girl made a check list everyday of things we needed to do...

Yes, balance is something we are all looking for, yet is it something like Darren Hardy said, "a pot of gold at the bottom of the rainbow". My thought is yes, we constantly are setting ourselves up for failure and disappointment. We spend our time comparing ourselves (and our life events) to things on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, I could go on and on! I also compare myself to my mom's generation (they do it all! Working moms with clean houses and home cooked meals every night) and Martha Stewart (don't get me started on the damage she has done)

I want it all, a clean house and time to relax. Can I have both? Most days my choices are: clean the house or go for a walk...only 24 hours in a day and I refuse to loose any more sleep!
I ask myself this morning why do we chase after the "pot of gold"? Why can I not look around my house and focus on the clean kitchen and not focus on the craziness happening in the living room.

Today my challenge is find balance in the life I have chosen. I will not live in the framework I feel I should have, yet live in the moment extending grace to myself and my family for the unexpected interruptions. Living life in a messing house, eating popcorn for dinner and being grateful because I worked a long week and a pay check is on it's way!  - that my friend is my new balance!

Muddy Puppy

Many years ago my friends started having babies. I was not able to start that journey with them so we got a dog. He was my fur baby. He was 13 yrs old when he died on May 11, 2016. On that day I vowed to never get another dog. They are to much work and pain. I missed him too much to see past my grieve.

A couple months later I was at kids camp with my 9 yr old daughter. It was "ask God for what you need" night, I was handling some things in the back of the room, I finally sat down to just look around. As I sat there, a thought was dropped into my mind (I am pretty sure my daughter was praying at this time), the thought was my daughter needed a dog. She is an only child and would need a dog to comfort her when she was a teen or tween. So she was not alone. 

I was not happy with this thought process, I DID NOT want another dog! 

Well to make a long story short of a very stubborn mom, after my 40th birthday party we went to go find a new dog for my daughter. 

We got to the farm and I found the cutest little puppy I had ever seen, it was love! She was snugly and soft. Mean while my family found a puppy who out in the yard, covered in mud and running around with all the other dogs. I was ready to buy the small cute none muddy puppy, When another family asked to hold it, I looked at my husband and daughter as they played with the muddy puppy, and reluctantly let the other family hold my puppy. Yes, you guessed it, they bought the snuggle puppy and I was left with the one my family liked, the muddy puppy.

I am not even sure I held the muddy puppy, he was going to be my daughter's dog so no need for me to like him. As I paid for the muddy puppy, the clerk gave me the information on the puppy: shots, medications, and date of birth. When he said the date of birth, I gasped. Our new muddy puppy was born on May 11th,, 2016 right then I looked at my family playing with the muddy puppy in the corner and I knew God had planned this muddy puppy just for our family!

Now, Caspian Frodo is part of our pack, he loves all of us and boy, do we love him!

Valentine Challenge

Yes it is that time of year again, and to be honest one of my least favorite "holidays". Valentines is a day I remember all who may be lonely or dealing with loss. - so for me it is a day to spend thinking and praying for others.  - That is a side not and not what I want to share today.

This morning my husband was on his way to preach as a guest speaker at a local church. As many of you know he does this around the country all the time, yet this morning he is not feeling well. A bad cold has crept in and he is miserable. I was already planning on this blog and I was reminded to spend the morning praying for him.

I know that may seem too simple to blog about, yet I was reminded of what he always says to congregations: No one knows your husband's/wives/kids needs like you do.No one will pray for your husband/wife/family like you could. I may be the only one in his circle that know how much he needs God's healing touch this morning.

I want to make a simple challenge for you this valentine season. Whether you are happily married, struggling in marriage, have kids, single with good friends, or have family you need to take time to pray for them this week. As you go through your week take time to realize how many times you think about your kids or any of the above and take a second or minute or even minutes and pray for them. You may be the person that know what they are going through, and you can make a difference in their life by praying for that second.

As we go through this week of "love" and candy - please take time to pray for those who you know the best, you know their struggle like no other!

Side note: You may be upset with the situation they are in or just angry at them, I can guarantee that if you take time to pray, when you want to scream at them for leaving the toilet seat up once again, not only will God meet you where you are at, He will be faithful and help your relationship with your loved one! God heals relationships!

Should you be in Jail?

Yesterday was a big day in our house...our little girl turned 10. So what did we do to celebrate, go to the MOA, of course. We meet the grandparents there for lunch and then she wanted to do some shopping, so I went to bring the presents to the car. Now we were running late and it was a Saturday at the MOA so we parked far from the door, several levels from where we were shopping. I was carrying  a huge bag. I got around the mall to the parking ramp and realized I had to take several staircases up to the level we parked on, I said to myself, "Come on you lazy, fat bum go up the staircase, you need the exercise"

Now that may seem harsh, yet believe me this is normal self talk for me. Yet, this time, I was convicted - as the thought ran through my mind/heart.
Since, I read a book a month back that said if we followed the verse, "Love your neighbor, as you love yourself" most of us would be friendless and many in jail, I am trying to think of what I would say to a friend.

I have so often thought of this simple thought this past month, if I had said the comment about to my daughter, I may have permanently scared her self image. Then, why do I allow these words to be thought and most of the time accepted for myself.  To be honest, habit and not loving myself the way I know God has designed me to love. I do not have grace for myself and often am frustrating at having to give grace to others for the same thing.

I think I am loving others so much more, yet the fact for me is I only have as much grace and love for them, as I have for myself. I may let their actions go with out harsh criticism in word or action, like I do with myself. Yet do I stand in judgement - honestly- yes. I beat myself up in word and action then judge others for not having the same "self criticism"

Wow that may be too honest and I may lose friends because of that statement, yet I think we are all too guilty of the one or both of those things. I am now aware of my very destructive thinking of myself and others. I am learning to give myself the grace and take captive every thought bringing them before the microscope of would I say this to someone else.

I will leave you with one last thought... would you be friendless or in jail if you treated others the way you allow yourself to be treated?

 * Submitted by a woman who is growing and learning daily to show the love of God to herself and others more everyday. I hope this very vulnerable blog makes you rethink how you talk to yourself or judge others.