Discipline

I felt a little twinge in my heart when I started seeing the school supplies fill the shelves of stores. I love the start of a school year... reuniting with friends you haven't seen all summer; new clothes; a nice, glowing tan; new pens, paper, and crayons; and fall is just around the corner (maybe).

But this year is different... I woke up last Monday feeling a little melancholy because all of my teacher friends, husband included, started their week of inservice and it was my first "real" week as a stay-at-home mom. To snap out of the haze clouding my mind with sad thoughts, I jumped into the Word while Pax was taking his morning nap. During my devotion, the Lord really convicted me of how I'm going to spend my time this year. I'm one who operates well with a plan, but if I don't have one I can become super idle (and sometimes sink into self pity). I'm pretty sure this is not a good habit for day-to-day living. I felt challenged by Hebrews 12:11:

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."

Discipline has never been easy for me, so I set a few personal goals that I'm going to work on this year...

1) Time with the Lord (daily)

2) Exercise (5x a week- Run a 5K this fall, 10K in the spring)

3) Meal planning/budgeting (write it out and stick to it!)

I made a few sticky notes as reminders, and shared my goals with a few friends and family members for accountability. After my first week, I'm already feeling more fulfilled with how I spend my time. It's helped me appreciate, rather than take for granted, the gift of being able to stay home and spend time with Pax and makes me excited for the "peaceful fruit of righteousness."