Life can be all consuming. There is so much to do in this one room schoolhouse. There are dishes to clean, clothes to wash, bills to pay, lessons to teach, lessons to learn, meals to cook, mouths to feed, rooms to tidy, diapers to change, deadlines to meet, paperwork to be filled out, lawns to mow, animals to feed, supplies to buy, engagements to attend, practice to go to, appointments to make, hearts to mend, cuts to be bandaged, futures to plan. The list is endless. It’s LIFE. Too often, the “Things To Do” list becomes the center of our home, receiving all of our attention, all of our energy and all of our resources. We are doing it all for God, right?
Somedays I feel like I can conquer my world. Other days, I feel as if I am being crushed by my world. I feel overwhelmed and I cannot do this anymore! My hands are busy, I leave my sword…abandoned. I scramble for my shield. I cannot find it. Is it in the pile of dirty dishes? Or laundry? My cry becomes desperate, “Why is this so hard?”
I am bothered about so many things; but only ONE thing is necessary, Mary has
chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Luke 10:32
“Why is this so HARD?” … It does not take me long to remember. I AM IN A WAR, a war for my soul, a war for my children’s souls. I must fight for my family. We, husband and I, must fight for our marriage. We have to fight for the hearts of our children. He who seeks to steal, kill and destroy my family, comes at a more opportune time, a time strategically chosen. The enemy comes at a time when I am weak, when I am distracted, and I do not even know it. I am blindsided. I should have seen it coming. The evil one is relentless. Arrows fly.
When I forget that my fight is NOT with flesh and blood, but with dark forces unseen, and neglect to use the weapons I have been provided, then my victory is lost, and it is hard. When I forget that I cannot rely on my strength alone, then I am weak and drown under the weight of the burden I bear, and I feel like giving up. When I neglect to sit at the feet of my Lord, then, of course, I struggle.
I know the answer to all my struggles, and I must choose… I must choose to stop in the midst of the busyness and be renewed in His presence, or I will have nothing to give… I must choose to cast my care on Him and let Him bear the burden, or I will fall under the weight of it… I must choose to take up my full armor, resist and stand my ground against all that the evil one throws my way.
I must choose to stop and be empowered through my union with Him… JESUS.
How else is peace going to be restored? How else is joy going to fill the house with laughter and strength be the evidence? How else is love going to be our perfect bond of unity? How else am I going to continue on, fulfilling the sacred call of a wife and mother? How else is Christ going to remain the center of it all?