Wednesday's Words of Wisdom--Intentional Motherhood

"Every morning you are handed 24 golden hours. 
They are one of the few things in this world that you get free of charge. 
If you had all the money in the world, you couldn’t buy an extra hour. 
What will you do with this priceless treasure?"
~Unknown~

Normally on Wednesdays, I like to share a Bible verse and expound on the importance of scripture!  That is without a doubt the most important thing in our daily lives.  However, this past week, I came across the above quote and it really made me stop and think….

How many days to I get up and waste away the hours doing things that are so unimportant in the big picture of things?  I wake up and make my to-do list of things I feel like I just HAVE to do that day, but in reality, do all of those things really matter as much as I might think?

Do we really have to make sure every dish is washed, dried and put away?  Or should we sit down and play a game with our children?  Do we have to catch up on all the laundry every single day?  Or should we let the laundry rest for a day and go outside and play with our children?  Do we have to make sure all the toys are picked up and the house is spotless, or can we get the toys out, play dress up and have a little fun?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not preaching to you…I’m preaching to myself!  I am a perfectionist.  I like my house to be clean…and I mean like museum clean.  Sometimes I’m way too obsessed with making sure all the toys are picked up that I don’t even think I let my girls play enough.  I don’t stop cleaning and catching up with the “around the house” stuff long enough to even play a game or read a book with them sometimes.  I read this quote and I thought to myself how much time I am wasting?

It seems like I had my first daughter yesterday and she’s almost 4 years old!  Where did all those cute, cuddly baby smiles go?  When did she start talking like such a big girl?  When did she learn how to do everything so independently?  When did she start being such a big helper around the house?  When did she start acting like such a big girl? 

Why don’t I stop and spend time playing with my girls every day?  Why do I think a clean and spotless house is the most important thing?  In 20 years will I really be concerned with how my house looked in May of 2012?  Or would I rather look back and have wonderful memories of when my girls were small.  Memories of playing in the park, jumping on the trampoline, turning on music and dancing, sitting together cuddling with a blanket, pushing them in a swing and helping them go down a slide, making cookies together, and the list could go on and on…. 

The answer is easy.  I want memories of my girls.  I want to make a difference in their life.  I want them to have an intentional mother who didn’t ignore them with cleaning, computer time and my iphone.  I don’t want to be an absent mom.  I want to be a very present, and real mom who’s number one concern is my children…..not my house, not my blog, not my to-do list…..my CHILDREN!

God blessed me with two of the most wonderful girls I could ever imagine.  He has given me the highest responsibility ever.  Raising daughters to become women who love and serve God is my daily prayer.  So, instead of becoming “annoyed” with them for not being quiet while I’m trying to get something done, I want to focus on the responsibility God has given me.  He expects me to die to myself, quit being so selfish with my time, my desires, my to-do list!   I want to be an intentional, loving, Christian mother and enjoy these moments because I’ll never get them back!

I have recently revamped my daily schedule, and I’ve made sure to include a big chunk of time for my girls—no distractions.  Of course, we all have things that we have to do.  We do have to complete daily chores, do computer work, etc.  But, I’m going to make sure that I don’t let all of that “stuff” take all of my time.  I’m scheduling in time for my girls and I hope to encourage you to do the same!  Don’t let your life get so busy with things that really, in 20 years, won’t even matter at all.  Stop, slow down, and enjoy your family.  Say “no” to certain commitments if you need to.  No one can do everything.  We must prioritize our time—making sure we don’t leave the most important things out completely.

Start today.  Live your life as if every moment is valuable.  God gives us each and every day and blesses us with that time.  What will you do with it?

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