1 First Priority

Good morning!

I feel so good today.  The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and I have had some good time with my friend, Jesus.  Friends, these past couple of days have rough for me so to feel this way today is truly a breathe of fresh air!  If you haven't noticed, the blog has been pretty silent this past week.  We will get into that as we keep going today, but I will tell you that Raleigh and I have been battling a stomach bug that has taken its toll on both of us.  One day will be okay and then POW! a wave of yuckiness would hit us again.  No fun at all.

Anyways, enough of that.   What I really wanted to take time to share with y'all today was time itself.  How we spend our time and if what we are truly doing is worth our time.  This past month has been an interesting one for me.  As you know from my previous post, the beginning of March marked a new beginning for me as I left corporate America and began the venture into mommy/stay at home world.  Back in February, all I really focused on was finishing up work and I knew once March rolled around I would have plenty of time to focus on my goals, the babies, and everything else that I wanted to do.  That first Monday after leaving my job, I sat down and wrote out a huge to-do list for myself.  I did my lists in four categories: Adeline and Maralee, House, Personal Growth, and Hobbies.  I just knew that each day I would dive into accomplishing those goals on those lists.

Now, with today being the first of April, I have to admit that I have barely scratched the surface on those lined college-ruled pages.  What I have found over this past month is that I am still learning how to prioritize my time.  I think a big misconception associated with stay-at-home moms is that they have all of this free time compared to working moms. I realize the girls aren't here yet so my view is not focused on changing diapers and feeding schedules, but I have been doing a lot recently preparing for their arrival.  What I can say from this past month is that regardless of being a working mom or a stay-at-home mom, we all struggle with finding enough time in the day to get the things done that we really want to accomplish.  There are just so many "other" responsibilities that come up and take priority over our priorities.  Funny, huh?

The question to ask now is, "How do we make our priorities a priority?"  That my friend, I am still trying to figure out but here are some things that I am learning:

1. To let go of feeling like it is my responsibility, or my obligation to do those other things.  
2. To graciously say no without feeling guilty.  
3. To focus on me so I can serve others...in other words, not being a slave to other people's needs to the point of exhaustion which, in turn, debilitates me from being a humble servant
4. To invest my days instead of just have them whizzing by me.  
5. To carve out quality time with God first thing so I feel rejuvenated the rest of the day.

Friends, this morning I let go of one of my "other" priorities.  The minute I let go, God showed me a bible verse that coincides perfectly with one of my goals on my Personal Growth to-do list.  I just grinned at that sly dog for giving me that verse right after I gave something up for him.  He is so cool in his timing and that is what makes me love my Savior more than ever today.  I pray that you all spend some time with him and figure out how to take away some of those others and get back to focusing on what matters most.


"Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you.  Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm." - Proverbs 4:4

Till next time, let your light shine!

Blessings, christen

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