As a woman intent on serving the Lord, most of my waking hours are spent serving others, as, I believe, I’m called to do.  I’m not trying to sound like a martyr, or to impress you with my super self-righteous attitude…seriously!  This is simply a fact of life, living as a Kingdom gal.  The spirit of our age can subtly try to creep into our psyche and cause us to imagine such lofty, vain ideas as:

• *When’s someone gonna serve me?
• *Why doesn’t my husband cook/clean/(fill in the blank) for us, like all good new-age guys?
• *Kids are spelled W.O.R.K. and I need a nanny!
• *I wish_________________.
• *If only____________________________.
• *Why didn’t I__________________________?????

We’ve got to embrace a different mind-set than the one the world embraces.  I happen to experience unique and profound joy while chopping, simmering and serving meals for the fam, cleaning out the fridge, completing 4 loads of laundry, listening to my son read his Constitutional Law out loud to me, and, after picking up/organizing and tossing stuff…surveying a relatively tidy house.  Although many would declare these tasks to be dull, mundane and endless (not to mention, lifeless); on most days, I truly find the joy in every little thing my hand finds to do, as I do it unto the Lord.  Sure, I’m extremely human and I experience great frustration at times, coupled with impatience and a dose of angst…but the pattern of my life, by God’s grace, is to posture myself toward Him 24/7. 

I gotta say, though, there are times when I squirrel away some cash and buy myself a little R and R.  I call these ‘mini-vacations’.  Some take 10 minutes, 30 minutes or several hours, but they all serve to re-fill my energy tank and allow me to exhale, for even a very brief period of time.  I don’t consider these my absolute rights, but precious privileges and simple pleasures.  In my opinion, women in our culture can be so spoiled, demanding and high-maintenance.  They forget how blessed they are to be able to enjoy the little things.  I’m going to list a few of my favorites over the next few days. 

Coffee, tea, with me….

myself and I (and a friend if you want).  For me, popping into one of my favorite coffee shops*, even if I’m on the go, is a real treat.  Although I brew my own daily, there’s nothing like an extravagant espresso drink, iced or hot.  You might be a Chai, green tea or chamomile girl.  Whatever you enjoy sipping while sitting-novel thought – actually SIT….ALONE…and THINK while you savor the flavor of your favorite drink that someone else makes for you just the way you like it.  Who-hoo!  Party time!  If I have time to sit and read/study/pray/browse a magazine, I pop in my earplugs to block out the chatter, noise and clatter echoing off the walls of most cafes these days.  Some of the music they play at 7 a.m. is almost criminal.  Yes, sneaking out of the house very early – some cafes open at 4:30 a.m. where I live – is a great strategy for alone-time.  Maybe you missed this part – this is my # tip of the month or maybe even YEAR:  I never leave the house without a pair of foam earplugs-they are priceless for use while sitting in doctor’s offices, on airplanes, and any other public place.  Buy them in bulk at any drugstore and tuck a pair in your purse, diaper bag and car. 

*Very affordable mini-vacation.

More mini-vacations tomorrow…..

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 26th, 2008 at 10:02 am and is filed under No Ordinary Child. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.