Finding Rest in the Motherhood Mayhem
Today is back to reality after a handful of days at the beach, and a couple of days of some truth-filled teaching. My soul feels more at rest than it has in quite some time. It was so so good y’all. And this weekend’s instruction reinforced a message that I needed to digest.
“Rest is a special, sacred gift.” {Jen Hatmaker}
“God provides what we need. He gives us doable daily increments. He sustains us in daily labor.” {Jen Hatmaker}
“We don’t know the Spirit intimately, because we are never quiet enough.” {Esther Burroughs}
Let Go. Lighten up. Relax. Trust. Rest. Drink in life in big gulps. You have enough for each day. Be still. Stop. Listen.
Being a good mom is incredibly hard work. It’s taxing and sacrificial. It’s effortful and straining. So often I wrongly equate rest for laziness.
But being a good mother doesn’t mean that you forfeit permission to rest.
Perhaps you don’t have the ocean to remind you to unwind today, but maybe it’s the quiet of the morning when the house is still sleeping, or a car ride while your baby sleeps, or a stroll around the neighborhood…or perhaps it’s even a moment when you lock yourself in the bathroom for a mere ten minutes. It’s in these moments of rest that we find gratefulness, strength, wisdom, encouragement and joy. (2 Corinthians 13)
So what does rest look like practically for me as a mother of 4 rowdy five year old boys? I’m still hashing it out, but I’m pretty sure it includes:
- Time in The Word each day
- Listening to music
- Finding time to read
- Letting go of some of my checklist items in exchange for some unwinding in the evenings
- Sneaking out of the house bi-monthly or even weekly for an hour or two of alone time
- Going for frequent walks to exercise and clear my mind
If I don’t run 6 days a week (Sunday is my rest day), I’m not a good mom. Seriously. I stopped feeling guilty about it a few years ago. Besides, it teaches my boys some healthy habits!
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty”…but how do we dwell?? I think this doesn’t always mean you have to sit down alone, pray and read scripture, though those are great things! I think in the life of a mom with several kids(or 1!), it means, praying while you are doing the dishes…singing praises with your music while cleaning the house…talking about how much Jesus loves us to your children while playing a game…taking walks with your kids and talking about God’s beautiful creation..I think ALL of these things cause us to DWELL in the shelter of the most High. And in dwelling, we find rest.
So, after two and a half stressful, very busy weeks, the Lord showed me this morning that I have to stop, I have to rest and have ‘me’ time. I finally have nothing on my calendar because my body said, ‘Enough!’ and I am practicing the discipline of rest today and doing fun things like reading and browsing the internet- and I’m not even a mom yet!!! I have laundry to do, floors to vacuum, food to bake, bathrooms to clean, sheets to change, dishes to do, and yet I’m taking the afternoon off because as He often does the Lord allowed my body to scream at me to get my attention!
This is a timely and good reminder for even me! Thanks for sharing, friend!! : )
They key is learning to say NO! And not feel guilty.
Fantastic article Jen! You sure took great notes. I just wanted to stop by and say blessings to you and your family!
I am brainstorming with this one – “Rest is a special, sacred gift.” Really a mom needs some particular quality time for herself which will energize her in the long run.
Thanks for such a thoughtful writing & best wishes for your shinny family 🙂
-Scarlett.
So glad to have found your blog! Thank you for this post – I am also a multiples mom – I have boy/girl twins that are 20 months old. When they were born I had four under the age of four! It’s a VERY tiring job being mom to all these littles, but so rewarding. I also struggle to just relax and unwind because I often feel it means I’m lazy, since I’m not accomplishing anything visible. When I take an afternoon in the Word or a snooze on the couch I’m a much better momma!