In a Whole Different Light!

We need to realize that we are not just doing tasks. We are not just wiping little noses, and folding laundry and washing floors. I am building a legacy. I am shaping God's kingdom. I am in the process of not only discovering my calling but that of my family as well. I am doing things that are seemingly insignificant but have eternal rewards and that are accomplishing in me and in my family that which the Lord has determined and set as important and trustworthy! I don't know about you, but it sure does make me look at my everyday tasks... in a whole different light.

(author unknown)

I read this in an email I received last night from one of my mothering mentors, Jolene. I had also just read my sister-in-law, Jamie's blog, where she shared her heart about the job of mothering, and the enormous-ness of it! She was not complaining, but rather sharing where she is in her journey of parenthood.

So I went to bed last night, with all of it on my mind...not a good idea for someone with insomnia!

As I laid there, I thought about how I look at motherhood. I am now raising (with Duane's help) a teenager, a pre-teen, and a little girl! I am in three different stages of this journey and I often get bogged down with the enormous-ness of it as well! The only difference between the journey that Jamie and I are on, are the ages of our children.

When I look at my children as my legacy, it puts an entire new light on them! When I think that the mundane, insignificant tasks that I do day in and day out, as being eternal...or that teaching special sounds to first graders, or listening to goodnight prayers is all part of shaping God's Kingdom....hmmmmm!

This is not necessarily a new concept to me, but I have to be reminded often that what I am doing matters!
I also need to be reminded that I don't have to do it all in one week, or even one year...but rather, one day at a time, one day at a time, one day at a time.....and I don't have to do it alone! God is always there!

I have heard my Mom and Duane's Mother say many times, that I need to relax and enjoy each moment. Then I heard myself say that very same thing to Jamie last night, which can only mean one thing...I have reached the stage of mothering, where I realize that time waits for no one!

I also read this week in The Message, one of my favorite verses. Reading the Bible in today's language, most often gets my attention, and this verse was no exception!

Jeremiah 29:11.....I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.

For all of you who read my blog, that are mommies...Keep your chin up! You are touching a bit of eternity every time you change a diaper or wash a basketball jersey!