Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Survivor

Yes, I survived. My house survived. My family survived.

After putting everything into practice for 6 weeks while I worked a full time and part time job, I can now completely prove it works. (And completely prove, I am not a 5 am morning person, no matter how much sleep I get.) Setting a bed time for myself, a schedule for the family and household chores, and meal planning to fit our schedule worked.

While I would be exhausted after two jobs in one day, my body still got the required sleep it needed. I continued to use the morning commute for worship and time in God's word (with the occasional disruption of moody children.) Scheduled family chores kept the laundry done, kitchen clean and house picked up. And thanks to a persistent 5 year old, we still had family prayer time. While there were not so perfect moments, all in all it went better than I thought it would.

So what did I learn through these six weeks? I think my quote would say, "While life around you may get chaotic, you can choose to outwit the chaos." It may take a little planning and sticking to a schedule, but in the end you have time to breathe and avoid becoming overwhelmed because things do not pile up on you.

Whether you have snickered or rolled your eyes at my theories on choices, I am here to say they do work. Simple daily choices make a huge difference in your life. So, may I encourage you to choose God, choose rest and exercise, choose to make your home a place of refuge. It is the only way to survive this chaotic world and whatever it throws at you.