A Juggling Act

I’ve never learned how to juggle balls, but as a wife and mother who teaches her children at home, I’ve learned over the years how to juggle responsibilities. By the grace of God through my status as full-time homemaker, I’ve learned something of the arts of cooking, baking, nursing, and teaching. For years I’ve been trying to perfect these and the other arts necessary to manage a home successfully. I will admit that there was a time when I thought of these tasks as menial. But, now that I have these responsibilities, I know how much skill it takes. It’s just plain tough.

The other day I decided to do something that would throw a wrench into this perpetual juggling act. I signed up for a gym membership. Admittedly, I should have prayed over this decision a bit more, but before I knew it I’d signed my life away. Okay, not my life, but a substantial monthly fee. Now, to justify the expense, I find myself exercising four times a week. All this exercise gobbles up a lot of valuable time, so now I feel more stress than ever and I’m constantly fatigued. Ironic, isn’t it? I thought that exercise was supposed to give you more energy and take away stress? For me, it’s just not panning out that way. So what have I learned from this?

1) Exercise is good for the body, but God renews the soul. He alone brings life.

2) That where I am deficient God is abundant. Um, I’m not that smart. Or organized. So who’s going to get credit for raising children who are intelligent, productive, God-honoring citizens? God will receive all the glory and only I will know how far short I fall and how little credit I deserve.

3) All I have to do is obey. What a relief. I do not control the outcome. I only control the degree of my submission.



Verses for consideration: Timothy 4:8, Isaiah 40:29, Galatians 6:9, Lamentations 3:22-24