Last Updated on July 30, 2012
Remember Chinese missionary and Olympic athlete Eric Liddel (you know, Chariots of Fire)? I love what he said: “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.”
I think one of the things that helps me enjoy being a mom most is—well, doing something else, too. Something that uses the way God has specifically wired me to serve people in addition to the top priority of my husband and kids. I personally am a better mother because I “get out” (even if I’m staying in) to serve in my uniqueness.
For me, this happens through the week, but especially on Thursdays. My mom has called the day my kids crash her place the best day of her week and my kids can’t wait to see her either. She’d be fine with me taking a day to catch up, but I get a big kick out of taking the day to work for FamilyLife. Thursday evenings I can’t wait to see my kids, and I actually have greater patience and excitement for them as I draw from the exhilaration of having been in my “sweet spot.” I’m energized. My husband loves it. I’m blessed because he’s been my biggest advocate in using all the resources we’ve been given (see Matthew 25:14-30).
Serving outside the home in the capacity you can is obedience to God’s command to build up the church body (Ephesians 4:7-16). It certainly rounds out my tunnel vision of the world from focusing only on my own home—failing to see our home as a launchpad for the Kingdom. The Proverbs 31 woman opens her arms to the poor, extends her hands to the needy, and even uses her talents to bring income for her family.
I also think it’s good for my kids to see our family blessing people outside of our home—and to see that my world is bigger than them, and their own world is bigger than them. It’s extra fun when they help put together care packages, make a meal for someone, write notes to stick in with mine, visit someone in the hospital, or other ways they serve with me even as preschoolers. My husband and I hope to create a culture of serving in our home like this.
Hope you have a chance to feel God’s pleasure today.
Janel Breitenstein graduated summa cum laude from John Brown University and began her career with NavPress, where she worked on The Message Bible. After having four children she resumed her professional career (around her momlife) by serving as a writer for FamilyLife. Personal loans. In January of 2012 Janel and her husband, John, packed up their family of six and moved to Uganda to serve with Engineering Ministries International (eMi), an organization that focuses on poverty relief and development, providing structural design and construction management for Christian organizations in the third world. Join us as we all learn first hand, through Janel’s posts, what it’s like to go from suburban America, to answer God’s call in Africa!
The one thing I miss with being a military family is letting our children have regular visits with their grandparents every week. They are all older now though and so I am able to do things occasionally outside our home without them. Other times I include them with what I am doing so that they can learn to be servants with a Christ like heart.
Have a blessed week!
Sallie