New Normal

It's crazy how one minute your life is completely normal. The next minute sirens are blaring and suddenly your world is turned upside down. And you are left to deal with the destruction. To put the pieces of your life back together, one at a time. That's where I am.

Don't Use Butter, Substitute Margin

A border, an edge, reserved space. For teachers, it's that part of a notebook page that the students are Not supposed to write on. It's holy...or something like that. Still, some of my little darlings pay no attention and go right (or write) up to the red line and beyond.

Like my kiddos, I haven't been paying attention to the margin in my life. And God began to speak to me about. "You weren't made to go 90 miles an hour through life. You don't have to be a part of everything. The world can still run without you. (Ouch!) Take a break. Be still and know that I am God." So over the past the month, I've been creating margin in my life.

Margin in my daily schedule - I had to give up some groups, activities and hangin outs that I enjoyed for more time devoted to important things.

Margin in my health - Not having something on the schedule every minute freed up some time for me to work out more and also get more rest at night so I'm not exhausted when I get up in the mornings.

Margin in my checkbook - I began taking a certain amount off the TOP of my paycheck rather than saving whatever I had left at the end of the month. Because, let's face it, there's never much left by the end.

Margin in relationships - I always think of John 15 (the vine and the branches). So I'm doing some pruning. I am letting go of friendships that are draining and emotionally unhealthy, and pursuing ones that are balanced and uplifting.

And these are some of the results that have happened since adding margin to my diet. I have more time to spend in God's Word. Not just a check off the to-do list, but really diving in and finding out more about Him. I spend more time in prayer and have watched God swiftly answer some difficult requests I've thrown His way. I'm getting healthier, but it's a process. Maybe if I had Jillian or Bob... Anyway, I get more sleep at night so I'm not fatigued when I get up and spend the day with 17 lil punkins! My checkbook is a lot happier and so is my savings account. It's a relief to know that if something breaks or there's an unexpected emergency, I can pay for it without going into debt. Over the past six months, I've felt very alone. But I am building new friendships and rebuilding old friendships. I have people in my life who sincerely care about me, and who I feel like I could talk to about anything. There's a feeling of peace that comes with accountability. That you don't have to go through this life on your own.

So in closing, I recommend adding a little margin to the recipe of your life. (Yep that was cheesy, but I just couldn't help myself!) =)