The Chore Threat

My girls and nephews playing in the sprinkler...always fun. :)

I made the bottle quickly. My hands mixed the sweet formula into the warm water, the smell always reminds me of smarties candy. The milk filled the bottle and I squeezed the nipple in place. Out the front door I went. The lamb's cries hit me along with the blanket of hot air. I fisted my empty hand. How could I have forgotten to feed her? As I walked to the shed, I glanced at the full clothesline. I needed to get them down soon and put them away. I also needed to put the kids to bed, do the dishes, sweep the floor...

My fist gripped tighter. I was falling behind in my chores. Between the work I am doing to prepare for teaching in the fall, the visits from family, and my determination to have some fun with the kids, the normal bread-and-butter activities of keeping up the home were falling through the cracks.

With that thought, my attitude fell lower. The next day I called a friend and we talked about my attitude toward summer "fun". On top of my frantic activities, I had not been able to get time alone in several days. After listening, my friend asked if I ever snuck outside to sit on the front porch and breathe. The answer was no. However, she insisted that getting outside with no chores or purpose would help me cultivate a more peaceful heart. 

That night, I put the kids to bed, and stepped outside onto the porch. It was spectacular. I expected quiet, but was greeting with hundreds of birds songs, insect chips, sheep baas, and cattle moos. It was chaotic and brilliant, like sitting next to my own bubbling brook of life. I felt my shoulders drop. I smiled. God is handling this whole wide world of life, why am I fretting over my own tiny corner of it? 

I am so caught up in managing and manipulating, afraid of dropping or forgetting a single thing, yet God has it all covered. The chaos is not chaotic to Him, but part of a perfectly balanced world that He lovingly tends. I can let it go. His hands are already holding everything up. 

His yoke is easy, the burden light, (Matthew 11:28-30) if I will turn my head and allow Him to take the lead.

Chores. They can go on for days and are never finished. Lord, please give me a heart of compassion towards this. Let me trust You and rest in You. 

​Amen

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30, NIV

Micaela and my nephew, Bruce, at the school playground.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed with chores?