"If we can just get through this season, the load will lighten."
"If we can simply survive this stage, we'll be home free!"
Sound familiar?
I've spoken and thought those very lines more times than I can count.
I remember, when our boys were small,
often longing for the next stage:
the stage when they'd be big enough to
put on their own coats;
ride without a carseat;
go to the bathroom by themselves;
stay home without a sitter.
I remember the days when they'd be in bed by 7:30 or 8pm and my husband and I would have the whoooole evening ahead---just the two of us. Of course, then I was lamenting that the boys got up so early in the morning. These days there's no quiet evening for two, unless we schedule a planned date out, as our boys stay up nearly as late as we do!
These days,
teenage boys drive away without me beside them,
college visits loom on the horizon,
school, work, and church schedules find us going multiple directions at once.
I just want to hit the "pause" button.
And I remember, with chagrin, how frequently I wished away time...wished for the next stage...wished things were different than they were.
Oh, I still have so very much to learn.
But God is graciously, patiently at work on this old selfish heart of mine.
He's impressed words and truths on my heart;
words that echo in my mind almost daily.
Embrace. Invest. Be intentional. Be all there.
Don't simply let the days "happen."
Don't wish them away.
Don't wish for a new, different season.
Courageously welcome and make the most of each one.
Because every stage, every season, is a gift; a good gift.
Each one is God-designed to draw our hearts and our attention to Him;
to make us look more like Him.
Sometimes it's hard. Sometimes it hurts.
But all of it has been sifted through His all-wise, loving hands
for our good and His glory.
Whether we find ourselves in the
college days,
newlywed days,
parents of preschooler days,
parents of teenager days,
or empty nest days,
He's called us to be wise,
gladly investing and trusting Him with
each day for His glory and His fame.
Contrary to what I so often think,
it's all about Him.
"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:15-16
6 comments:
Thanks for the good perspective! I needed it today :) I find I am learning the same things that you are! Much love!
Celebrating, Cherishing, Trusting Him in each day...each season of this Life. There in His presence and providence we find contentment, peace and courage for what each day...each season...holds. Thanking Him with you and for you today!
thanks friend! Wonderful words. Off to go live them now!
Every time I come here it is like a refreshing drink of cool, crisp water. Thank you for living your life out loud here Nikki!!
Yes. Oh, yes. I so need to remember to be content in every season of life, because God is constantly growing and shaping me, and using every stage of life to do that.
Living in the now is hard for me, but it's so much better--and easier!--than always looking behind or ahead.
Thank you, Nikki, for your words of wisdom as a mother in a stage a little further along that me! I find myself too often living in the past and missing those sweet baby days, and I needed the reminder to enjoy the days that I have now because they too will soon be in the past. We definitely can't go backwards in time, and I definitely don't want to wish my life and my kids' lives away by wishing for the future. Joining you today from the MOB link up.
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