What’s Most Important

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The frustration was mounting.

Every time I turned around, sat down, stood up, or went to the bathroom a child needed me. All I wanted were a few minutes maybe half hour to devote to working on a project. After all, God had placed it on my heart to do this project so it must be important.  

I left my computer open on the dining room table all afternoon waiting, hoping, looking for those spare moments to sit down, to research, to pound away at the keyboard.

Maybe after I get the two-year-old settled in for nap. By then the baby was fussing and needing his own nap. So, I changed another diaper, nursed another time, rocked a little while longer.

Maybe when he is asleep, I can grab a few minutes before the toddler wakes up. By the time t3he baby was asleep, the oldest two had set up a tea party with our special books, and I knew I needed to invest some time in them. Then everyone was awake again, supper needed to be started, the living room needed picked up, the table needed cleared for supper, and the list of mom responsibilities continued.

Knowing those moments I had been searching for all day weren’t going to happen, I closed the lid on my laptop and set it off to the side feeling discouraged and unproductive.

When the children were finally tucked into bed and asleep, I set my computer back on the table and sat down. As I stared at the blank document on the screen, I felt completely and utterly defeated.

First, I questioned…

Wasn’t I supposed to make progress on this project?

Hadn’t God placed a call within my heart to do it?

And then, my thoughts turned to blame…

If my husband would just take the children for a few hours, so I wouldn’t have to deal with their interruptions. Or if my children would just play by themselves. Or synchronize their nap schedules. Or not leave such a mess for me to clean up. Or not need to eat three meals and a couple snacks each and every day. Basically, if they could just take care of themselves and not be a bother to me, I could be a lot more productive and actually accomplish projects for the kingdom.

And that’s where God stopped me.

That still quiet whisper of his voice let me know my thoughts had taken a wrong turn and were headed down a road filled with the murky potholes of ungratefulness, selfishness, despair, and self-pity. No longer was I wanting to please God, I was looking to please myself. No longer was I seeking to do his will, I was belittling the very blessings he had given me. If I were to keep going, I was going to end up stuck in a sinful mindset instead of choosing the joy the Lord has so graciously given me and honoring the blessings he has placed in my arms.

As I put the brakes on my thoughts, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the verses I had read just a few days before.

“Children are a gift from the Lord;
    they are a reward from him.
 Children born to a young man
    are like arrows in a warrior’s hands.
How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them!
    He will not be put to shame when he confronts his accusers at the city gates. ” ~Psalm 127:3 (NLT)

Time for a U-Turn

Those verses helped me direct my thoughts into a U-turn and set them back on the right path. The path sprinkled with thankfulness, grace, and joy. As my thoughts headed back down the right road, I knew I was headed toward a more blessed life, because I could see now the blessings God has already given me in giving me these children.

The responsibilities that accompany those children may seem many and may seem to crowd out the other work we feel we are supposed to be doing for the kingdom. But God has called us to be faithful to steward the gifts he has given us—including our children.

As Dr. John Trainer (or C.S. Lewis depending on what you read) put it:

“Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work.”

If God has given you children, they are your most important work right now. Sure, He may call you to other projects, tasks, and ministries in the midst of motherhood, but God’s call to those other things will never supersede his call to mother your children, his gift to you, well. God has trusted you to point their hearts toward him. He has given you the responsibility to shape their hearts and minds to live a life obedient to his will. Your children should never be a casualty of your ministry in the church or community.

Reflection

How often do you get frustrated and let your thoughts head down the road filled with murky potholes when your children need your attention and care?

What steps can you take to keep your thoughts on the right road on the days when it is impossible to do anything but meet your children’s needs?

How have your children been a blessing in your life? Make a list and look back on it when the days are challenging.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for the gift of my children. I know they are a blessing from you and that with that blessing comes a responsibility to nurture, guide, and shape their hearts for you. Help me to keep that great responsibility at the forefront of my mind so that I am not easily distracted by the noise of the world telling me I need to be more productive. Give me wisdom and self-control to manage my time well so that I am able to live out the other calls you place on my heart without neglecting my responsibilities as the mother of the children you have gifted me.

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