Thankful Thursday-Week 15 (7/18/13)

The older I get, the faster time seems to move. The weeks just seem to be flying by and I want to push the pause button. My girls are growing up, I am growing old, and the world keeps changing. That being said, God is still good and God is still moving; therefore, let’s shout his praises and spread news of his goodness. Yep, it is Thankful Thursday once again!

As I stated above, my children are getting older by the minute. My oldest daughter is 16, getting ready for her Junior year of high school, learning to drive, dating, and spending more and more time with her friends. My second oldest is 15 and right on the heels of her older sister, which makes me very thankful that we waited to have the youngest, Molly, who is 8. With each passing day I fight the urge to just grab a hold of my children and not let go. I know the time is coming, not too far off, when the two oldest will go off to college and start their own lives. For those of you that have gone through this, it may not seem like a big deal as kids always seem to find ways home again and some even stay there; however, I am not ready for this. All I keep thinking about is what we haven’t done, what I could have done better, etc.

This week I had a conversation with a couple who shared their summer adventures with me. While this exchange left me feeling inadequate for a moment, God used it as a gentle reminder that I needed to invest more time with my children, especially since we are running out of time with the older ones. You see, ever since I went back to work 5 years ago and got more involved with the church, my family rarely spends time alone. It has been awhile since we have had a family fun day or spent quality time together. Now, I have lots of fun family memories, but God made me realize that we need to keep building on those memories. I have some guilt with regards to my youngest daughter because I feel she missed out on some of those “great moments”, but God is once again reminding me that we still have time.

My husband and I have some choices to make. We need to decide what has to go and what has to stay in order to get a healthy balance for our family. To be honest, I believe some church activities or obligations will have to go. Gasp! Remember, just because it involves the church does not mean it is something God is calling you to. If I went to every activity or Bible study I wanted to attend, I would be at church 7 days a week. This may work for some, but I would fail miserably as I would neglect my other duties to do so. I have a responsibility to my husband, children, and God, to be the best wife and mother I can be and sometimes that call for hard choices.

Thank you God for those gentle reminders and nudges. May I always be closest enough to you to recognize your voice through all the busyness and noise. I am so very thankful and grateful for time to build on our family memories and I choose to do so today because I don’t know when that time will run out. Please help me and my husband to see the activities or obligations that we can eliminate in order to make more time for our family and help others to understand our decisions. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN!

So what are you thankful for today? It just takes a minute to drop a line and spread God’s goodness.

Until next time, stay safe and God bless,
Missy