Need a Squeeze of Freshness in Your Spiritual Life? {Encouragement for the Weary Momma}

Some days are simple, others are complicated. A few days are easy, the rest can be hard. All bring joy, but not all bring happiness {they’re different, I think}.

I was supposed to start this post yesterday, but something held me back. Now I think I know why. Because it wasn’t ready yet. This morning, we got some disappointing news. It’s nothing that’s the end of the world, but it was enough to make this pregnant momma cry.

Immediately, I could feel dissatisfaction rising up within me, and my first thoughts weren’t those of peace and thankfulness but of frustration and anger. Something tells me I’m missing….something.

Can I be honest with you? This week, I’ve been promoting this ebook bundle like crazy. And I really do believe in its value. But the first thing I’ve found myself doing these past few mornings is not praying or spending time with the Lord, but looking at Facebook. Checking my email. Trying to think how I can best communicate my excitement about this great deal without seeming overbearing. I’m sort-of Type A like that.

This morning things just came crashing down. And the Holy Spirit really forced me to take a good look at my priorities and where I am putting my trust. Is it in ebook sales? Popularity in the blogosphere? The assumed results of a family situation that just isn’t turning out? I’m thinking we both might know the answer ;) No. 

Let’s face it, I’m weary.

Into the spiritual growth section in the bundle I went, finding the 1 Peter Bible study, Kept: Secure in His Hands Whatever I Face. God knew what I needed! It’s written by the ladies who lead the Hello Mornings study groups, which I was first a part of this past winter. In it I found this beautiful quote:

“This God of ours speaks to us through His alive Word. He bends down from heaven and meets us in the middle of our messy today through His Word. And His Word has depth that cannot be discovered with a quick read. It has layers of beautiful truths and unwavering promises that await unfolding…over time.”

1 Peter 1:3-4 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…”

The hope I need today, the hope you need today, is living, through the sacrifice of Christ. Our heavenly inheritance is kept for us, which can bring us joy and promise even when some days on earth seem nothing of the sort.

You know, it’s good to invest in great resources. Books from this bundle even, that show me how to organize my home, teach my children about how God desires us to live, manage my finances, rekindle the romance in my marriage and cook and clean like nobody’s business. And that is SO beneficial!

But I can’t allow the Lord get lost in that process. I want to first nurture my spiritual health, by the grace of God. There are books in this bundle that are helping me along as I spend time in God’s Word. That smaller section of this big ebook bundle is the most important part!

Why? Because I will become easily overwhelmed by the endless to-do list that is motherhood and life. I will fail, time and time again, in being the godly example to my children that I want to be. My meals won’t always be planned or prepared as healthy as they should be.

So first, I go to the well, and drink from the living water. To seek my Living Hope and bless the name of the Lord. To open the Bible and study 1 Peter or another book, or read favorite verses that give me strength. To trust that “He who began a good work will carry it on to completion”. {Phil 1:6}

There’s no prescribed time of the day that I must do this {although mornings are good, but don’t always happen!}. I don’t even have to do devotions alone. Lots of time spent in God’s Word is preferable but isn’t always possible. And yet, when we…

• open our day in prayer {even a short one}
• set our alarm for five minutes earlier {just five!} than we normally do & read the Word
• post a Bible verse above the kitchen sink {where we spend lots of time anyway} 
• listen to Scripture-based and Christian music throughout the day
• pray with our spouse, just once a day
• sit down for a few minutes and learn a Scripture verse {with our children}

….it is time well spent. That is a promise that we can stand on!

How about you? Do you find yourself weary and worn down? How can I pray for you today?