Time has marched on, and I find myself here again, with a few quiet moments to reflect. It’s amazing how fast time flies. It’s a very full time of year, as the calendar turns to September, and school schedules and fall activities kick into gear. Yet, I find myself with a relatively quiet schedule ahead. It is much needed. I’ve prayed for this season and sensed it would come in time. Many of us have seen major shifts in our lives in the post-COVID years, and I am no different. It’s taken a toll on all of us, probably for you as well. Yet, I am surprised and discouraged to see that most everywhere, life keeps buzzing on at full speed.
I’ll share a quick example. Lately, I’ve been really focusing on listening better and asking questions to our boys when conflict arises at home. One of us pulls them into our lap (this won’t last forever, so we are trying to enjoy it while we can!), and asks, “What’s going on? What are you feeling right now? Can you tell me what just happened?” As they speak with often tear-stained faces, I sense the love of the Father who does the same for me. So, let me speak tenderly here in this space, hopefully with the love of the Father coming from my words. I don’t know that I’m an authority on this topic in any way, but I have learned some things the hard way. I have pushed myself too hard and faced difficult consequences. But I am still learning, still trying to lean into my Father and learn from Him and wiser men and women who have gone before us.
Can I whisper into the crazy-busy schedules I see around me, “What’s going on?” I hear how families rarely have dinner together, how we are running from one activity to the next, how we don’t have time for basic self-care needs like sleep and exercise to be met. I can only assess what is going on in my own heart when my life starts spinning out of control, because I have certainly been there. I won’t make quick judgements from the other side of a screen. This season of rest has seemed almost mandatory for me, however. I have faced some health issues in the last couple of years off and on, and though not critical, they have made normal life quite difficult at times. But do we have to wait until that is the case in our lives before we slow down?
I’d like to offer a simple challenge and encouragement here, as the school year begins, to carve out some time with the Lord and a trusted friend or spouse, to ask some hard questions. Why are we all so busy? Is all we are doing really necessary? Is there really no way to find some margin on our calendars? Walk with Jesus a while through the New Testament and see how he ordered his life. He had regular seasons of both full days and quiet times away. And He always held situations up to His Father for approval. I have to ask myself, “am I doing that?” It can be so hard as a busy homeschooling mom and pastor’s wife to find 20 minutes of quiet in the day to be alone with God. I still do fight for that time, and some days it is longer or shorter, but I’m finding moments as I go through the day to be just as profitable for my soul. The truth is, Our Daddy will find us if we are seeking Him, no matter the time of day, no matter how long or short we have to call out to Him.
I want to leave you with a permission slip to rest. Remember (for those of us who attended a brick-and-mortar school) those coveted “hall passes?” It can be hard to pull away from activities that seem expected, what may feel like an obligation, or even good things that would be hard to let go of. Very few of us can step away completely from things that weigh down our schedules, things that perhaps we can’t let go of. We all still have meals to prepare, dishes and laundry to do. But I suspect that somewhere on your calendar, there is a place your Father could be highlighting in this next season, a place that could be His. It could be a new creative endeavor that would feed your soul, starting a regular date night or night with friends, a new prayer habit, or simply time to go on a daily walk. The Lord calls us all to abide in Him, to lay aside the cares of the world as we are able, and draw near. Praying we all can take some small steps in that direction for our own good, for the sake of our families, but most of all because we serve a gracious Father who died so that we could be free.
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me… These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” John 15: 4, 11
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