| LIFE IN PERSPECTIVE: MOUNTAINS AND VALLEYS Dear Sisters We have started a new schedule in our home. I wrote earlier and told you about the time blocks we have been putting into practice. Like all new things, it has taken a lot of effort to remain on track. To press on and to keep going, despite our tendencies to revert back to our old schedule, the one we were so used to. Not that the old schedule was necessarily a bad one. It's just that I find we are all changing so fast and different needs arise. What worked for us last month could change this month. We are still finding a balance between 'home' and 'work' on the one block of land! I have to confess, I'm impatient. I expect the children to have this new routine down pat. I find that I am constantly reminding them. Is this normal? Yes!! Many ladies I speak with tell me they have the same expectations and same disillusionment when things don't go their way. But you know ~ the answer lies, I believe, in how I react to this. Do I get angry? Sometimes. Mostly, though, I am frustrated. I look at my children, know they are trying, and become frustrated with myself! I know things take time. I know I am impatient. I know that I shouldn't expect too much, too soon. I also know that I can discourage my children, if not by word, but by my own reaction. A reaction that I may not know I am putting across to them, but is so very evident. They are definitely 'smart' when it comes to 'reading mommy'!! Towards the end of this week, I became quite weepy when things weren't going to plan. "Where am I going wrong?" I asked my dear Andre. "Do I have my priorities wrong? It feels that I am getting nowhere..." He turned around and gave me a look of total surprise. "But what you are doing, Helen, is great. Look what has been achieved this week. Look how smoothly the home has run. Look how the children have been". He is my anchor, for sure! Dear sisters, if you are ever feeling this way, may I encourage you to press on. Continue to do the right thing. Even if you 'feel' you are getting nowhere. Carry on. Do the next thing. I may have an idea of the ultimate. I may strive for that ultimate and never reach it. And in my strivings, I fear I may forget the most important things of life. Here ~ I'll tell you what they are; God Andre My Children My Home Others/ the Church I can sometimes get so consumed with a task at hand that I lose sight of why I am doing it. Like I have told you before ~ everything in my home is done to create good memories for my children. If this is the case, then why am I fussing? My family can see me fussing, and this can create an unpleasant atmosphere in the home. Truth of the matter is ~ it's when my eyes go out of focus. Maybe the cares of life take my eyes away from the prize. Oh! Perhaps I should wear blinkers ~ smile ~ Twice this week, the Lord has impressed a truth upon my heart. We had a visiting pastor come to our church and we had the blessing of dining with him and his wife. At one point of the dinner, he and I were left alone at the table. We were talking about the highs and lows of Christian life. "The mountain tops are wonderful, Helen, but life is in the valleys. Nothing much grows up there on the mountains. The view is great, but the facts are ~ it's the valley that's fertile. That's where we live most of the time". Later in the week, I received an email, where another sister in the Lord confirmed this same picture of a Christian's life. I find it so encouraging to hear that others are experiencing the same concerns. Not that I wish my problems on them. But it sure helps to know that others are going through the same situations. This spurs me on. This helps me to encourage others. The proverbial snowball! It makes me want to help others who are experiencing the same difficulties. Sisters, we are all novices. When you see another sister in the Lord who you may feel has 'got it together', bear in mind that she may have gone through much heartache and striving to get there. Also bear in mind that she may not feel very much 'there'!! And so ~ may our prayers be to focus on what's really important in our lives. Live according to God's plan for wives and mothers. And in the meantime, appreciate the abundance of the valley. With love, Helen |