How to be blessed in the busy

Fall has arrived and I couldn’t be happier about it. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the summer very much but I love Autumn. I love the smells and the colors. I love when the days get a tiny bit shorter—not too short—just enough to know it’s time to eat something warm and snuggle inside. But this time of year has also found me unbearably busy. I tend to run from one thing to the next on most days and rest isn’t exactly on my schedule.

However, on a whim one recent Saturday morning, my husband and I sat outside under our covered patio when we had no place to be. The rain pitter-pattered above us while the steam from our coffee rose to meet the damp morning air. My littlest came down from his bed and snuggled in under my blanket, still warm from sleep. We spoke in whispers as we watched our hummingbird friend flitting about after his breakfast, praying he’d come close enough to touch.

I didn’t take a picture and left it off of social media even though the temptation was there—I’m learning some moments are too sacred for others’ eyes. And this moment, this tiny space, in the broad scheme of all of my moments, was mine. In fact, it helped me realize something I hadn’t been living; This moment was all I had been given. Now.

I was present. Which is unbelievably rare for me.

Tomorrow isn’t a guarantee

We’re so busy being busy it seems we’ve all forgotten that we aren’t promised tomorrow. These words are a reminder to me that today is what I have been given (even if maybe today isn’t necessarily the day I want to be in.)

I don’t know when life became more about where we want to get to rather than where we are.

But here we are nonetheless, walking our paths, weaving in and out of our lanes, rushing back and forth sometimes never looking up at the person next to us. We’re so busy moving on to the “next thing” that we often forget that the next thing may never arrive.

Busy is a catch-phrase that means we must have a big purpose on this Earth. I’ve caught myself half-listening when I ask someone how they are doing. Or respond with an exasperated “busy” when asked how I’m doing.

All too often I find we’re all looking over the shoulder of the person asking our welfare just so we can get on to the next thing. As though that next thing matters more than the soul in front of us now.

Being who we are; blessed

I’m a mom to three boys who have very busy schedules, not to mention everything I have going on in my own life. However, I’ve recently seen how this isn’t what should define my status in my every day. Busy or not, I want to choose to be who I truly am—blessed.

Blessed to be alive and blessed to be an active part of my life.

Every morning we awake and have breath in our lungs and sun on our face is a day to rejoice and know we are truly blessed.

I am tremendously blessed to have a family to care for and moments where I can sit quietly and watch a hummingbird fly, even if it is just a moment in my chaos.

Friend, we can be busy and blessed.

We can choose to take our moment that we’ve been given and bask in it. Even if the moment is hard.

Rather than being frustrated by my busy or even exalting in it, I no longer want it to define me.

I know you can relate when I say there are moments that I wish would just pass me by—moments that I’d rather not be in. But if we choose to live out our identity of blessed in even these moments I believe we shift our thoughts and our lives.

So, rather than striving and pushing through this moment, let’s relax in the busy and enjoy the moments that we are in. That seems impossible, right? How do we relax and be busy?

I believe that it’s a choice. We may not be able to get rid of all of these responsibilities but we can choose our attitude during them.

Which in turn makes each moment we are in—the only one we are given—a moment lived well.

Choosing thankful and grateful in the busy

Friend, I’m really just #preachingtomyself today. But if this seems relevant to you, perhaps you would like to join me in being far more intentional this week in the following ways:

• To really listen and put aside my “to-do’s” when I ask how someone is doing.
• Ignore the comparison trap that whispers in my ears most days and be content with what I have and where I am at that moment.
• To truly be what the cute, trendy fall sign says in my living room—grateful.
• Enjoy the changing leaves and simple Sundays, where football is on t.v. and the smell of something good is cooking in the oven; even though I have a mountain of laundry to do and a busy week to plan for.
• Smile at those around me even when I’m running kids from one activity to the next and I can’t quite fit “that thing” into my day.
• Choosing thankful in the day and the moment I have been given no matter the circumstances.
• Loving well those around me and rejoicing in the people God has gifted into my life and into my arms.
• And lastly, being present in today and leaving tomorrow with all of its what-ifs right where it belongs: in tomorrow—in his hands.

Grateful, thankful and blessed. These really aren’t just cute catchphrases on signs and pillows. These are not accidental things that just happen to us. No, these words are choices we make daily. They are something we actively remember to do and remember we already are.

Feel free to drop me a line and let me know how you’re doing with these challenges this week.

As always, thank you for stopping by, friend,