"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." --John 15:5
The last few days have been so busy. Our coffee shop taxes were due yesterday for the 4th quarter '06. Monday was devoted to getting those done. The last couple of days were spent with friends and family and doing general housekeeping. Lewis has been teething, sometimes waking up in the night, which has led to some extra fatigue. It has not been bad, but at the same time it has been hard to focus on the Lord for more than a few minutes which eventually becomes evident in my attitude (ask my husband!). I realize that good chunks of devotional time is out the window, and that God is merciful in that (like Heather Morozov mentioned in her introduction), but I would love to hear some words of wisdom on this subject. How do you stay connected to the vine in the busy-ness of life with children? Many of you have much more on your plate than I do so my hope is that you have some knowledge in this area. :)
4 comments:
I still don't really have it all figured out yet after 10 months, but I do know that when Elijah goes down for his first nap - I just have to sit down with the Lord. I once thought I 'didn't have time" but I have found I have more time when I do that first. Kinda like tithing...I don't know really - that just works for me!
my time with in the Word & in prayer is when I'm nursing! It's different for me because Anthony nurses for 30 or so minutes but I make a point to sit AWAY from he TV (doesn't work in the evening bcs of diferent energy level) and have my Bible set up right where I am. Having a reading plan helps as well- wherever I leave of I can pick up next time around! Paul's words of craving spiritual food take up a different meaning when you see your little one so dependant & longing for the milk!
listening to the Scripture read on MP3 or smth is another idea I am hoping to try when I can'tfind time to sit down! God's perspective keeps me above the water can't compomise that! Yulia
For my first two children I found that I did best by every morning combining exercise with Bible reading. I had one of those chronological Bibles that broke the whole Bible down into daily readings, and I would read it while I worked out on my exercise bike while the baby napped or sat in her buzzy seat thing and the 2 year old ate breakfast. I usually had to finish the reading during nursing. That kind of fell apart after the 3rd and now 4th was born, so I now try to read a little in bed before i fall asleep, and I also try to read while I nurse. Something that has made a big difference is realizing that God values my work with my children (I won't get on my soapbox again- sorry about that earlier), and that therefore even laundry can be worship to Him if I present it to Him as my work in His kingdom. He hears my prayers constantly, and so I have learned to pray more constantly, while I wipe bottoms or do dishes. A quiet time is less realistic for me, so I have to try to devote all my time to him. While I wash away the mud off of my children in the bath, I can think of how He washes me clean. While I cook a supper for my family, I can praise Him for always providing my daily bread, and my spiritual food. While I break up a fight between my kids, I can verbalize to them and myself how He desires peace and all the fruits of the Spirit to grow in our lives. The list goes on. WHATEVER you do in word or deed, do ALL in the name of the Lord. I really appreciated what Yulia said about surrender. But some other things that have worked at different stages for me: sing my prayers to Him to the tune of whatever lullabye I'm singing to my baby as I rock her. Sounds dumb, but it really worked for me. As my kids got to be talking age, we started a daily devotional time with them- read a Bible story out of their little kid Bibles, act it out, pray about it (and have them pray aloud too), even sing a song sometimes... and I took that time to teach them their Bible books and even memory verses. That works even when they're older. Also, we struggled for years to really have a family prayer time. It just never seemed to happen consistently. Recently we created a prayer corner in our home, with candles and everything, and that really helped. Now we all gather and kneel together and we hardly ever miss it. It's made a huge difference in our lives. Also, TV steals a huge amount of time from us. Like Sara pointed out, turning it off or taking it out reclaims that time for yourself, your family, and your walk with God. Wow, this is long. I'll shut up. :)
I don't know. I haven't got it all mastered yet. :). When my 2 year old wakes up in the morning until naptime at 2pm, he is in CONSTANT motion! But, I have found that the Lord will meet me even in teaching my son about him (reading a veggietales story book or doing a memory verse with him). We pray with our son before every meal, so I make that time to be thanks from my heart, and I cannot tell you how many two word prayers are uttered from me daily (like, Lord, help me! or the longer version....Lord, please help me not lose my mind disciplining a 2 year old who has just dumped 160 DVDs in the floor!) :)
I also put a devotion book or other uplifting reading in the bathroom. I am usually never in there alone, but I can read and connect with the Lord a bit while my DS rearranges the toiletries under the bathroom sink.
In all, my BEST time is really in the evening after he goes to bed. I can really focus some, even though I know the Lord is gracious enough to meet me in the moments during the day when I need him and open myself up to Him. You'd be amazed how much you learn about his love, discipline and grace by being a parent of a 2 year old and trying to actively love your child in the midst of a tantrum. Oh, how I am so like that child with the Lord when I don't get my way! It is truly eye opening.
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