On My Mind This Week....

Do you ever feel like you have days...maybe weeks....where your head is so full and jumbled that it gives you a headache?


I woke up with a dull thudding in my brain this morning and rather than blaming getting up to baby during the night, I thought I'd take the time to think about all that's been in my head this week.


Here's a sample.....

• planning lessons....for next week during and after a 3AM feed and wishing I could just shut off the brain so I could sleep
• feeling really hot
• do people think that me being a Christian is all about what I DON'T do?
• why is j so whingey? why is he waking through the night so often? why do I have not a clue as to the answer to those questions?
• how do I politely refuse an offer of more work?
• should I even be working at all?
• why am I so selfish? judgemental? impatient? lazy?
• trying to fit another thing into a day that is already full
• wondering what to cook for mum's group or dinner...only to find half the ingredients for what I wanted to make are no longer in the pantry
• working out the best times to make phone calls...a) for when I'll actually be able to talk to the person on the other end of the phone b) for when it fits into the eating, sleeping, playing schedule that's running this end and c) for when I feel like I am alert and awake enough to make it a worthwhile conversation
• considering ebay purchases
• planning a holiday
• the grocery shopping dilemma
• AND so it goes.......

I guess as a woman....a wife....a mother.....that list of things our mind dwells on is always 
l-o-n-g....VERY long. And yes....it can certainly seem overwhelming at times.


But I have also been reminded of God's promise to me....Isaiah 26:3 - You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.


Now the question is.....will I allow room in that full and swirling mind for my focus to be on trusting Him?

The TO-DO List

I bet your TO-DO List is l-o-n-g!
If you're a woman...it definitely is. If you're a Mum....it most certainly is.
So long in fact, I bet it sometimes feels overwhelming to think about, let alone write down. And if you do put pen to paper, you probably feel like a roll of tp isn't even long enough for all you have to do. Particularly as we enter December and realise that Christmas is just a month away. How did that happen?

So let, me guess what's on your TO-DO List. Any of these sound familiar?

• washing - linen, kids' clothes, grown-up's clothes, towels, tea-towels and rags (and of course hanging it all out, folding it and putting it away is extra on top of loading the machine)
• cleaning - every room...surface....floor...etc....wiping, dusting, vacumming, etc...
• cooking - including meal prep and cleaning up for 3 meals a day...7 days a week 
• shopping....not the 'for pleasure' variety but just the essentials
• your call list....mailing list...'thank-you for the birthday present' list...return the missed call...etc....
• playing with baby/children...ooppps...that's the fun stuff that comes after the feeding, changing, bathing, soothing, rocking, etc....
• read that book before you get another over-due notice from the library
• organise those art/drama/cooking classes you decided to run over the holidays
• Christmas present list....who are we buying for again?
• pack for the weekend away
• bake for the final Mums and Bubs morning
• attend the work break-up party
• do the end-of-year marking and report writing
• send Nanna a letter and card for her birthday
• drop a meal round to a friend with a new baby
• decorate the Christmas tree
• comment on your friend's blog
• put a bag of clothes and toys together for the op shop
• iron your husband's uniform
• put those 87 photos you recently had printed into the right albums
• bid on the ebay purchase you've been watching
• pay that long list of bills
• sign the loan contract at the bank
• organise money for the special offering at church this week
• attend awards night
• do the bookwork for hubby's business
• exercise....don't just talk about it
• and no doubt the list continues on and on and on.........

Girl...you are amazing! You have so much to do and you do it with a smile. You serve your family and friends willingly. You give cheerfully. You are industrious, conscientious and generous. Your kindness is noticed. Your joy is contagious. Your caring is appreciated. Your encouragement makes a difference...every time.

But please, just remember....don't attempt to do anything on this list without first spending time in the presence of the One who empowers you to achieve all that's on it. Soak in His word....meditate on it...pray...sing praises...seek forgiveness....have faith....obey.


Hmmmmmm....another l-o-n-g list but you know something? It's one that's even more essential you DO than the first one. 

Surviving Singleness #2

This one is called:

The List

I am a ‘list’ girl. I like writing lists and even better, I like checking things off the lists I write. I even have a ‘Kirsty’s Little Book of Lists’ (inspired by list queen Belinda B) that has lists of all sorts of things….movies I want to see, baby names I like, goals for the year, ‘to do’ lists for the holidays, present ideas for this year’s birthdays, shopping and bucket lists..…the list of my lists is endless.

A few years back, during the midst of my single days, I read Rebecca St James’ book “Wait for Me.” Following her idea, I wrote a list of the qualities I was looking for in a husband. I guess I wanted to clarify what I thought were the most important characteristics in a mate. It was fun to write and made me think hard too. Here’s some of the ideas from my list…..I would like to meet and love a man who: is honest, has a sense of humour, loves me, is strong – both physically and emotionally, values family, walks closely with God, is friendly, is a good listener, is fit and the list went on….

Then it hit me…hard! It was all well and good to write this list and be on the lookout for a man who fulfilled the list, but the most important thing was actually how many of those qualities was I displaying? Was I loving God…walking in trust and obedience? Was I loving my family….keeping in touch with my parents? Speaking kindly to my siblings? Was I approachable, friendly, others'-focussed? Was I looking to be healthy and whole physically? Was I a woman of integrity, one who lived what I said I believed? Was I treating my friends with respect and encouraging them?

 In the waiting period of the single years, can I encourage you to make sure your focus is not entirely on Mr Right and all you hope he will be and do. God has a plan for who He desires You to be as His beloved daughter. His desire is for you to be a woman who expresses love, joy and peace. He wants you to exhibit patience, kindness and goodness.  He created you to have words and actions that exude gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

You know, in so many ways dating, romance, marriage and love are NOT about me. And yet, in considering my (future) spouse, there’s an awful lot that IS about me. Who am I? What am I like? And is that a blessing to those around me now and will it be a blessing to my husband? If not, pray for God to help you become the person He wants you to be, for the one He wants to give you.