Here is my sister's latest devotion. Enjoy!
Renewing Your Spirit
Dear Mothers,
I have just come back from one of the best women’s retreats that I have ever attended. For a mother of five to be able to go to a weekend retreat at the beach is a miracle in itself! God provided the money, a wonderful husband and grandma to watch the children and said, “Go!”
God spoke to me about a number of things, mainly letting go and trying not to play God. As the retreat was ending, we were asked to spend some quiet time in prayer just to intentionally listen to what God might be saying to each of us. I asked Him a question. “Lord, I feel so full, so refreshed, so loved. How do I keep this feeling? How can I not get to where I was before this retreat? How do I keep this renewed in the midst of my mothering?” I had my journal with me and I was determined to write down anything God said. He didn’t speak right away, but I felt Him give me the idea to make three lists.
The first list, I wrote down all my “Have to Do’s”. Some of these were laundry, cooking, cleaning floors, cleaning the kitchen, disciplining and homeschooling.
The second list was all the things that “Take Me Away or Distract Me From God”. Some of these were movies, surfing the net, blogging too much, watching the news on the Internet and talking on the phone with friends too frequently.
The third list was “Things That Renew or Refresh My Spirit”. I could ask my husband to watch the kids so I can find a quiet place to pray for fifteen minutes. Before I do anything fun or recreational, make sure my Bible study has been done. Read good Christian non-fiction that makes me “go deeper” with God. Carve out time in my schedule to go to lunch with a godly friend. Keep journaling my journey with God. Take the time to exercise. Taking a walk alone with God can be very refreshing.
It’s so easy to lose the “euphoria” feeling high as soon as you get home and are smacked in the face with all of your responsibilities. But God has shown me a way to keep refreshed. It is my job to follow through and not let life and the enemy suck me dry again. You can’t live your life existing off your last spiritual high and waiting for your next one to come along. God wants us to walk with Him daily in “spiritual moderation”. It’s a consistent walk with few highs and hopefully few lows.
Take time to pray and ask God what is distracting you from hearing Him. Ask Him what refreshes you in Him. Your list is going to be different then mine. That’s great! We are different mothers in different situations. Our God is an individual God who loves us the same but speaks differently to all in their unique situations.
Oh Mothers, don’t just exist, persist in Him. Don’t survive motherhood, flourish and thrive in the high-calling that God has given to you. He wants to renew you day by day. He wants to “restore to you the joy of your salvation.” We have much to be thankful for.
From One Mom to Another,
Stacie Brown
Wife to Steve
Mother to Joshua, Marcus, Jessica, Andrew, Jacob and one on the way
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