IT’S LAUNCH DAY for the print version of both Lies Moms Believe (And How the Gospel Refutes Them) and Lies Moms Believe: The Companion Bible Study! Can you believe it? It has been quite a faith-building, surprising, growing journey to get to this point, and I’m so grateful for each one of you who has played an integral part in it!
One of the sweet ladies I am particularly grateful for is Jessica Anderson, who writes at Intentional in Life (and who guest-posted for me recently!). Today I have the privilege of guest-posting for her! She has been such a supportive and encouraging part of the Lies Moms Believe launch team, and I’m thankful to call her friend.
One of the most common laments I hear from moms is that they are just too busy. The sentiment tends to be that they feel they “don’t have time” for those pursuits they used to enjoy prior to becoming moms – pursuits like practicing self-care, in-depth Bible study, deeper friendships, regular date nights, giving time to the cultivation of hobbies and interests, and learning more about various topics which are of interest to them.
This is such a problem in today’s mommy culture that the longest portion of Lies Moms Believe (And How the Gospel Refutes Them) is the portion in which I address the lie that we “don’t have time”.
I want to shout it from the rooftops for all my sweet fellow mamas to hear: there is hope! You can (and should!) pursue other things outside the realm of motherhood itself.
Don’t at all hear me saying that you should neglect your children, fail to intentionally pour into them and raise them well, or go off and do your own thing to the detriment of your family. What I am saying, however, is that we actually are not the best moms we can be when our lives revolve solely around our children and the work of mothering.
When we do that, our marriages suffer, our own interests and God-given giftings end up being forgotten, and burn out can be right around the corner as we fail to pour into ourselves so that we can then pour into our families.
Yes, but How?
You may be reading this as a mama living an incredibly busy life and wondering how on earth you’re supposed to be able to spend time on pursuits outside the work of mothering. Again, there is hope. Here are 5 ways you can begin to take back your time as a busy mom:
1) Seek the Lord’s wisdom and direction as to your list of priorities.
As I’ve written on before on my blog, the true key to finding balance in life is to be in the Word of God. That’s the starting point – not the latest self-help book, expert blog post, or motivational speaker. The wisdom of man can’t hold a candle to the wisdom and truth of God as found in His Word.
We read in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that it is the Word of God which equips us for daily life, the implication then is that if we are not regularly in the Word, we are ill-equipped for the work set before us. So, get into the Word, mama! That’s your #1 priority and will lead to the wisdom and understanding required for all your other priorities, as well.
We no longer have to go about our days in confusion and overwhelm; the Lord has already laid out in His Word what He desires to be the primary priorities for us as moms.
In addition, for any specific situation we are wondering about, we are given the promise that “if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5)” The Lord’s desire is always towards revealing Himself to you.
He doesn’t leave you guessing or wandering around in the dark attempting to read His mind as to His desires for your day-to-day life. He wants us to go to Him in prayer prior to each decision we have to make, and He is ready and willing to provide us with the guidance and help we need.
2) Turn off (or at least put away!) your phone.
By far, my largest time-sucker is my phone. Perhaps you can relate! I always find it interesting that we have all the modern day conveniences (like washers and dryers, grocery stores, clothing stores, dishwashers, and crock pots) that our foremothers never had and yet we still complain about not being able to find the time to clean our houses, make dinner, keep up on the laundry, etc.
The problem is that we have exchanged the more time-intensive work women performed centuries ago for the tasks of scrolling social media, following all our favorite bloggers and podcasters and keeping up with what everyone else in the world is doing.
The words of Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:11 have, perhaps, never been more timely: “That you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.”
I fear that instead of following this admonition, we are instead living more as the women from 1 Timothy 5:13 who ” learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house, and not only idle but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which they ought not.”
We see far too much of this going on via social media every day, don’t we? As Ecclesiastes 1:9 tells us, there truly is “nothing new under the sun!”
Turning off your phone during certain times of the day, putting it away in a drawer or in the other room, or at least turning off all the notifications will help cut down on distractions and free you to more easily take back some of the time you may have been wasting on social media.
To read the rest, be sure to head to Jessica’s blog!
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If you could use more encouragement for your journey of motherhood, I invite you to join me for my free 7 Day email course, Mothering by the Book: God’s Design for Motherhood. Sign up here and also receive a discount on my book, Lies Moms Believe (And How the Gospel Refutes Them!) as a little gift of congratulations for completing the course!
