Work As Worship

Work As Worship

by | Sep 21, 2013 | FaithJourney, Marriage, Parenting

A couple of weeks ago, I hit a really low point.

I think every housewife/mom can relate to these moments. Moments when you feel undervalued, under-appreciated, and overworked. Dishes. Laundry. Diaper changes. Cooking. Serving. Driving. More dishes. More laundry. Husband comes home late from a hard day at work. But oh, do not tell me about a hard day…thanks to you being late, my hard day was made longer. Let’s talk ungrateful kids. I take all this time to plan our weekly menu, picking out what’s healthy yet yummy, go grocery shopping, do all the prep work, and even bake my own bread, only for them to tell me, “Mommy, I don’t like it.” Really!? Then there’s the hair. Oh the hair. My Goliath that I have to face every morning. They complain that it hurts. I can’t get them to be still. Their frustration turns into my frustration and vice versa. At the end of it, even Allan is frustrated listening to all this madness taking place. He blurts out, “You know, you really should figure something else out for hair…maybe something easier.” WRONG COMMENT, Buddy!!! Your non-morning-person of a wife, who was already hot, just got hotter (and I don’t mean in an attractive way). My breaking point was this: in midst of all this frustration, Peanut asked me to help her put on her socks. I stopped all the housework I was doing (for them, mind you), and helped her put her socks on. They were really tight, so it took me a few minutes. Afterwards, instead of a “thank you,” what I received was: “They’re too tight.” That was it. I was done. I just walked into my bedroom, took all the self-control I had to not slam the door behind me, and went into my closet to defuse. I didn’t have to explain anything to Allan. He knew he had to take over from there.

After Allan came home from dropping Peanut off at school, we had a heart-to-heart over coffee (as we always do when I have these moments). I sobbed and told him how I truly felt (as I always do at these heart-to-heart conversations). “It’s like I’m trying so hard and nothing gets appreciated. Instead, what’s always pointed out is something wrong that I’m doing.” I hate these moments…because the “ME monster” in me comes out and can’t be restrained. What about ME? Think about ME. ME. ME. ME! Yet I can’t help it sometimes. Allan is always so gracious with me, calmly listening and taking in what I have to say. He even apologized for the hair comment earlier; he said he was only trying to help. I already knew that. I told him I’m just irritated…and I’m venting. He prayed for me.

I then went into the bedroom and opened a book that I’ve been reading. It happened to be on a chapter that spoke to the very place where I was at. I love how God does this…all the time.

The chapter was about bowing our work to God in worship. Doing every task, no matter how small or mundane, as an act of worship to God. Here are some quotes that I read that day:

“To work is to worship; to worship is to work.”

“Lord, let each task…diaper changes, preparing meals, washing clothes, answering my two-year-old’s endless questions…be done as an act of worship to you.”

“Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you’ll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you’re serving is Christ.” Colossians 3:23-24 The Message Bible

“He sees and values all that you do when you do it for Him.”

“We feel that we must achieve to feel significant, but God says, ‘Be faithful in your work, my daughter, and you will find significance in my sight.'”

“In God’s eyes, there is no division between the scared and the secular. He is the Creator of all. ALL your work is important to Him! He is in all, over all, and longs for you to glorify Him in all…for you to lift up your work as worship to Him.”

“Work becomes sacred based on how we perform it.”

I hate cleaning. Absolutely hate it. But I do it, with my youngest daughter following me around with a duster, with worship music on full blast. This is my sacred act of worship.

I am an introvert and would rather spend all day working on a project or writing or reading. But I pick myself up, go over next week’s meal plan, and start making my grocery list (I would much rather be using that same laptop to blog!). It’s all for God. This is the spot, this is the role, this is the season He has entrusted me with. It will never come back again. Every little act of service I do for my family is ultimately for God. It all becomes my sacred act of worship.

Since then, I try to remember this truth: in God’s eyes, there is no division between sacred and secular…between mundane and significant. When it’s done for God’s glory, it all becomes sacred and significant.

God really wanted me to know that on that day. If you can relate to the kind of day I described, I know He wants you to know that, too. When you feel undervalued, HE sees great value in you AND your work. When you feel under-appreciated, HE wants to shout, “THANK YOU…for taking care of My children (husband included). P.S. You are also increasing your inheritance in heaven.”

I think it’s OK to have one of those crazy moments…when we can no longer hold in our frustrations. But always, I find my way back to resting my soul in the presence of God. That’s what I did on this day, and Jesus sweetly whispered to me, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40).

The quotes were taken from the book Satisfy My Weary Soul: For I am Desperate for Your Presence by Linda Dillow. I highly recommend this book!

The UNeasy Road to Victory Part 1

by | Jul 16, 2012 | Parenting

As you can probably tell from my last post in the parenting category, I was not at a very good place.
-There was less structure and more chaos.
-I felt discouraged, hopeless, and sometimes defeated.
-I was overwhelmed and stressed out.
-I was being reactive rather than proactive in my parenting.
-To be honest, I grew a little lazy and was not giving my all.
-I had lost my confidence.

It was time for the “reset” button. I needed major retraining, mainly for myself as a mother. With the advice of my mentors and prayer support of friends, I was determined to dive back in, this time 100%.

If only there was a true reset button. How EASY would that be! I push a button, and WALLA! My children are ready to go with my new game plan. Have I told you yet that I tend to be idealistic?

The “reset” process has been long and difficult, to say the least. It has been requiring every square inch of me, from the moment the girls get up until the moment they go to sleep. I see progress some days, and I see regress on other days.

Let me share with you a day I recently had which definitely fell into the “difficult” category. I took the girls to the pool for our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) playdate. I was looking forward to seeing my friends I hadn’t seen in a while. About half an hour into playing in the pool, I sensed that Peanut was quickly advancing into her “testy” mode (I know her so well by now, I can smell her attitude a mile away).
I gave her a warning that she must stop the attitude, or she’ll sit in the chair.
She didn’t stop. Strike One. Out of the pool, and off to the chair we go.
She tried to fight sitting, but I told her either this or go home. She sat.
After playing again for a while, I corrected her on taking a toy from her sister. She talked back. Strike Two. Off to the chair we go.
She tried to fight the chair again, and I gave her the same choice: either sit or go home. She sat.
Before she went back into the pool the third time, I explained to her, “This is the last time you’re sitting on a chair. If you disobey or talk back to Mommy again, we’re going home.”
“Yes, Mommy.”
She played nicely and listened well for another 20 minutes. Lunchtime came, and when I said we all needed to go to the bathroom first, she said she didn’t need to go. I explained that I needed to, and they must come with me. She refused. With all the attitude she could muster up, she said, “No! I don’t want to!” Strike Three.

It was not pretty. She kicked, screamed, and shouted, “I DON’T WANNA GO HOME!!!!!” She tried to pull away from me. I kept my calm as much as I could, while I picked up my 36-pound daughter with my 95-pound body. I tried to hide the gigantic embarrassment I was feeling inside. My friend helped me with LittleBit (thank God), and off to home we went.

Peanut screamed all the way home (about half hour drive). By the time I parked in our garage, she was finally in her “surrender” mode. She knew exactly why we had to come home (for talking back to me, once more), and she also knew there will be another privilege taken away for the way she behaved about coming home.

We’ve had some rough, draining days during this “reset” period. Just when I think I’ve seen the strongest side of her strong will, she takes it to a whole new level. I’ve been working persistently on her “fight for control” issue for the last two weeks, yet progress seems to come ever so slowly. However, where I have seen a major progress is in my attitude. I no longer am in a defeated, stressed out, reactive mode. With God’s strength and wisdom, I’ve been able to create more of a game plan, be proactive, and regain my confidence. This has made all the difference in the world!

On the morning of the pool outing, during my prayer time, I almost asked God to give me an easy day with the girls. Instead, this was what I ended up writing in my prayer journal:

Lord, help me to glorify You in my parenting today. Show me YOUR ways, and give me the strength and wisdom to walk in it.

Talk about God answering by granting me a divine opportunity.

To Be Continued…

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