Simplicity

I went to my Bible study on Wednesday, this is not really a Bible study, but more of a book club. We are reading a book called, God's Whisper in a Mother's Chaos by Keri Wyatt Kent. We were discussing the chapter on simplicity, a lot of the women in the group felt like this shined a light on the physical clutter in their lives, the stuff that is piled in their house. This is not something I struggle with, but I also don't think God is overly concerned (for most of us) about a cluttered house. The chapter really spoke to me about the cluttered life I have. I'm so busy most days that I feel like I might fall over by about 5 o'clock.

Apparently it is not enough for me to be "just" a stay at home mom. When Kylynn was about 6 months old I started looking around for "something to do". Because being a full time mom: nursing, changing diapers, and entertaining a baby were not enough. Since all I had to do with my free time was run our household, run the errands, grocery shopping and cooking, bill paying, and cleaning. Nah...that was nothing, I needed to do something to fill my time. So I volunteered for a ministry. Now at that time I had prayed about it for some time, God brought the opportunity into my life and so I feel like God wanted me to use my time on that ministry. But the older Kylynn got the more volunteering I added, I mean if I can do one ministry when she's 6 months old, I can do a lot when she's two years old!

My point is not that I am an ultra holy lady and look at me and all I do. My point is I do not think that I (or any of you other women who also struggle with this) are bringing God much glory when we volunteer for ministries 1) without consulting Him, 2) that we don't have time for and therefore causes us to give less (needed) time to our families, and 3)that wear us out so that we are not good at any of the things we do.

During the book group/Bible study on Wednesday a lady read from 2 Samuel 21: 15-17, where David is older and goes into a battle that he should of let other people fight. He grows faint and is almost killed before his men save him and tell him he is never to go to battle again so that the lamp of Israel is not quenched (Jesus, the messiah was to come from the line of David). Then she said, it's not your battle to fight, it's God's battle and He can handle it. You could have knocked me over with a feather. In my heart I must believe that it's my battle to fight, that God cannot accomplish this or that ministry without me, as prideful as that sounds. If not I would not stretch myself so thin that I grow faint and need other people to come in and rescue me.

Here's the truth, service to God is very important and he asks it of us. However God does not need us, He chooses to work through us. He is all powerful and can accomplish His will apart from me. I wish more Christians would use their time for the advancement of God's kingdom, but it's not my job to do twice as much as I can to make up for them. When those situations arise, I need to step back and pray, for God to provide someone for that ministry so that I can serve God well in the ones I am truly called to and so that I do not take someone else's place. I show an immaturity in my faith when I pile every ministry need on my back and start to walk along, I show that I think it is my job to save this world and that I must rely on my strength to get it all done. Instead I need to remember that my God has overcome this world and all that's in it, He is the savior of the world, and it is only by His strength that I do anything.