Faith

Time with Jesus for the busy mama

11. 25. 25. - By Alisa

If you’ve found yourself on this post, you might be like me. On the struggle bus to spend time with Jesus. You are desperate for that one on one time, outside the church walls. Obviously that time is needed, but it’s in those smaller moments where our personal faith really grows.

For months, every single Sunday in the thick of worshipping, I would promise the Lord…. “this is the week, I WILL spend time alone with you first thing in the morning!” Monday morning would roll around, and the sleep would comidere me once again. I’d failed. Or at least, allowed myself to be convinced. And I would slump right back into the routine of the weeks before.

The guilt of not spending this time set aside was eating me alive. I began slipping into a person I didn’t like, lacking the joy of the Lord through my day to day. My emotions were all over the place, I would act out of anger to my kids and husband. I simply didn’t like what this was doing to my core. Something had to change.

The first thing I had to realize, it is okay to refresh your approach. Re-evaluate what works for this season. Who knows, you might find joy in the new routine! I had to give myself grace and permission to not have a perfectly slow, uninterrupted quiet time. A dear friend of mine shared a video with me detailing a mom who was struggling. But the Lord waited patiently on her, reminding her that even her chaotic day, He was there. Also, just listening and singing worship songs is enough some days.

Practical steps to strengthen your faith practices

Here are a few things I have found to be so so helpful for me.

1) Once your alarm goes off, and its turned off (whether snoozed or not), lie in the warmth of your bed, and start your day with a simple prayer. Give gratitude for this new day and ask for direction to set your eyes on Him. This allows your heart to begin the day in the right place. Plus, your speaking to the Creator before your feet hit the ground! Holy spirit usually gives me a line or two of a song and i sing that (in my head) a few times over and over to wake up as well.

2) For me personally, my morning is usually rushed getting the kids ready for the day, and myself ready for work. In my mind, it was most ideal to start the day with a quiet, deep study. For one, I am far too sleepy for in depth studies at 6 am. If you are, I slightly envy you. But claim to be like you, one day. But not while raising littles. This is where grace comes in. And recognizing that even though a goal is great, sometimes its not reality right now, and that’s absolutely ok too. The Lord just wants what you can give and built from there.

One big take away

3) Once I accepted that the morning chaos would just need to ensue, I found a sweet devotional that I enjoy at my desk. It takes me anywhere from 5 minutes to 20 minutes, depending how much the Holy Spirit speaks to me. Also, I am starting my work day between this. I keep a journal of what I am thinking during this as well. I love to be able to look back at what I have learned and been through. For me, letting the morning happen as it usually did, and allowing my time with Jesus to be after the kids got picked up, allowed me to enjoy the morning rush. I know it sounds crazy, but now, packing lunches and backpacks for the day has become an act of worship and serving my family.

4) I do work in a call center, so I cannot have a ton of background noise. However, I have found playing worship music softly from my phone doesn’t get picked up and heard by the people I assist. This serves in two ways : I keep a constant state of worship and people who…. are difficult to work with… become less aggravating. 😉

Evening and night routine

5) Worship music is so key for me. Whenever possible, it’s on – in the car, cooking dinner, and sometimes even when the kids are taking their baths. It helps boost everyone’s mood so it feels natural. Build a good playlist, or even find one that’s already ready for you on your preferred platform and just hit play!

6) One last thing I have found to be helpful. Ending the night with a night devotion. I have another night time devotional that takes less than 3 minutes to read and pray through. Being off my phone the last hour before laying down really helps me rest well at night. As does ending the day chatting with my Jesus.

Final Thoughts

As we grow in our relationship with Jesus, we gotta have grace on how we are doing. Whether that is a sin struggle, spending time alone with the Lord, or simply understanding what we hear from Holy Spirit. The beautiful thing about a faith journey, is that it is your own. It does not have to be always growing and thriving. Our heavenly Father has endless patience and just wants to see us flourish in whatever season we are.

If we can learn to be patient with … well anything, we can also be patient with ourselves. The goal is not perfection my friend, the goal is a growing relationship with the Father.

A few of my favorites for reading & devotional time

Below are a couple links to my Amazon Associate page, specifically for Bible study/ Journaling. You’ll find the devotions I am currently using as well as other I recommend. Happy time with Jesus!