One of my favorite parts about our house is our front room. We have a brick fireplace with bookshelves on either side and a long mantle that stretches over the entire length of the wall. It’s the perfect center piece for the room and allows for fun seasonal décor changes that set the tone for our home right when you walk through the door. It has been fun over the years to switch out decorations (most of which are antiques) and add new photos to the bunch as our life has changed and our family has grown.
Little Eleanor slept in until 9:30 this morning (whoa!!) and my goal was to dust the front room. This normally doesn’t take me too long, maybe 10 minutes at the very most. But today I took my time as I cleaned off each piece, I started getting super sentimental. Snapshots of our wedding day, vintage coffee mugs I used to drink out of at my grandparent’s house, favorite scriptures framed, pictures of baby Nora just a few hours old, old barn doors and windows, little birdies…these precious things bring me so much joy.
It’s not everyday that I am able to (more like allow myself) to enjoy doing housework like this. If your a momma to a little one, it’s more like, “Let’s see how much I can get done during nap time,” or “I hope so-and-so will be content with that toy on the floor while I finish such-and-such task for just 2 more minutes!” Gladly, I have a pretty good schedule down now so I don’t have to think those things to myself, but let’s face it…some days getting it all done is tough. Some days you spend more time crawling on the floor retrieving toys and Cheerios than you do standing on your own two feet. Some days, the loads of laundry come out of nowhere, and suddenly your drowning in them. Some days you just wish that you could leave all the housework in the dust, kick your feet up with a Coke and say to heck with it all. But when it comes right down to it, it’s all of those little things that we do through our day that are SO IMPORTANT.
One thing I love about the Bible is that, while the words and truth remain the same, scripture can speak to into our heart in different ways at different times in our life. One of those verses that has specifically come back into my mind as of late is Colossians 3:23 – “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” I was reciting this verse as I was dusting over my mantel this morning. There are certain days that the chores I do around the house seem insignificant, mundane, repetitive. Sometimes I feel like what I am doing isn’t making that much of a difference. Maybe even a waste of time (like the continuous clean up of Cheerios). But when this verse comes to my mind as I am going through day to day life, my heart instantly does a 180, and I’m reminded of why I do the things I do. More importantly, Who I want to glorify by doing them. Our time here on earth is so precious…the things we fill it with should be just as precious. And no matter what we fill that time with, we can use it to further the Kingdom…if we CHOOSE to put our hearts in alignment with His.
So, when your sweeping up crumbs off the floor for the third time since you’ve woken up this morning so your child doesn’t choke on every little thing she picks up,
Your time is not wasted.
When you meet your husband at the door after he comes home late from a rough day with a cold drink and a smile,
Your time is not wasted.
When your folding little baby clothes, trying to find those socks that magically disappeared,
Your time is not wasted.
When you spend an extra 15 minutes rocking your baby girl to sleep, just because she is too cute to put down,
Your time is not wasted.
When you cook your husband his favorite meal just because…and then you burn it,
Your time is not wasted.
When your up washing bottles at 2am, about ready to fall over from sleep depravity,
Your time is not wasted.
When your laying on the floor reading the same Baby Einstein book over and over again,
Your time is not wasted.
When you put your baby to sleep early so that you can have a stay in date night with your hubby,
Your time is not wasted.
When you find yourself on your knees, asking for God to bless your marriage,
Your time is not wasted.
When you, again, find yourself on your knees, pleading that God would protect and grow your baby,
Your time is not wasted.
When you, again, find yourself on your knees, hands outstretched and heart open, petitioning for God to give you grace to make it through another day,
Your time is not wasted.
This life that many of us choose to lead, this life of growing our kids and loving our husbands, it MATTERS. What matters is that in the midst of the diaper changes, baking cookies, picking up toys, cleaning toilets, fun art projects, grocery shopping and not showering is that we are doing all of it to give glory to the God who created us to do these important tasks. I hope that this can encourage other moms out there. Whether your up during a feeding in the middle of the night or your dusting off your mantel, let’s not waste time and go through the motions. Let’s do it with a grateful heart and be able to lay our heads on our pillow at the end of the day and know that our time was not wasted.

I'm teared up reading this post Lauren. You are not wasting your time….you are blessing and serving and investing……God is pleased with you. I love hearing your heart.