The Small Theft of Ordinary Days

As a mom of a toddler and a baby, my life is very full right now. We are in the stage of learning new rhythms, which comes with constant repetition, meltdowns, discerning when and how to discipline, the endless need for patience, and what feels like constant split attention.

Every day often feels the same; I'm doing the same things over and over again without being appreciated or seen by my children. My girls don't yet realize all of the behind-the-scenes work that is happening to make life function: meal planning, constant cleaning, and pushing through what often feels like meaningless, mundane tasks.

It's no surprise that at the end of most days, I feel completely spent. But instead of wrapping up my day by simply going to bed to get the rest I most desperately need, what do I do? Sometimes, I watch a show, but many nights, I just scroll on my phone, and before I know it, what was only meant to be ten minutes becomes forty-five.

I then sit there bewildered, not because I was watching anything necessarily bad, but because I realized anew that I have wasted precious time—time spent sitting, doing absolutely nothing useful or helpful.

Have you ever done this? I don't think that I am alone in this struggle of knowing when to use my phone as a tool and not just a distraction. The truth is, most of us don't lose our lives in dramatic ways. We lose them five (or forty-five) minutes at a time.

In Psalm 90, Moses writes how life is short and brings out the question: how are we spending our days? Verse 12 says:

Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.

This is such a convicting reminder that every ordinary day matters. The sweeping of crumbs after every meal? It matters. The changing of the third blowout of the day? It matters. Addressing another toddler meltdown? It matters. Pushing through another sleepless night with sick children? It matters.

Most importantly—giving our family our full and undivided attention in the midst of a very distracted world? It matters. And not only does it matter, but that time is something you can never get back. Phones don't just steal time; they often steal our attention, which is the one thing children in today's world are craving.

The Ministry of Interruptions

Our society today has pushed a sad mentality that children are a nuisance. You see it out in public, on airplanes, and in restaurants. You may receive sharp looks or even hateful remarks from those who are childless. This mentality has trickled into motherhood (and fatherhood!), making us feel like victims and our children the perpetrators.

Because of this, we often see our children as merely "interruptions." We try to accomplish chores around our house, but our baby won't sleep. We try to go on a simple grocery run, but our toddler won't stop melting down.

But what if we saw those opportunities as Jesus did in His ministry: not as interruptions or inconveniences, but as ways to show Christ's love in those hard moments? What if instead of pitying myself, I thanked God for these children and the interruptions that they bring? What if these so-called interruptions are God's reminder that I need to slow down?

Our children will remember whether their parents were interrupted—or interruptible.

May God help us to show such a love to our children that they feel they can come to us with their hurts, concerns, and questions at any time!

Intentional Living

I want my life to be marked by intentionality. I want my children and husband to know that when they are around, they will have my full, undivided attention. I want to choose presence over distraction. I want my days to be filled with meaningful work—to raise children in a peaceful, Christ-filled home, not one that is full of distraction or angst. I want the decisions I make to be purposeful ones.

I want to live with this question in mind: "If I numbered today as one of the precious few days that God has given me, would I do anything different with my time?"

My prayer today comes from a wonderful Shane and Shane song on Psalm 90 that says:

When the sun comes up, satisfy us
Before the day has passed us by
Before our hearts forget all Your goodness
Satisfy us with Your love.

Prayer: Oh Lord, help me not to let these days pass by without remembering Your goodness to me, to my family. Lord, help me to show this love to my family through undistracted living, with boundaries that allow me to be fully present in my children's lives as well as my husband's. Help me live with an eternally focused mindset, living each day to the fullest. May I never take each day I live for granted. This life is fleeting; Lord, help me to live it well.