The Measure of a Mom

"Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty." -Matthew 23:11-12 (Msg)

I have been thinking about this verse for a couple of weeks. As a mom, there is so much mundane, routine in every day. Laundry, dishes, diapers, cooking, more dishes, baths, cleaning, cleaning and more laundry. I want my life to count for plenty. I also think there is almost a daily checking of what voices I listen to to give value to my life. The world says, "do do do". God says, "Be still. Be a servant. Persevere." Then I read another quote from a friend today:

"Determination is the ability to carry out a resolution long after the mood in which it was made is gone." - Chelsea Matthews

I have many hopes and moods! And they change:) No surprise really! But in being a mom and homemaker, I need lots of determination to keep believing that it all matters, even when my moods don't help me much!

I am hoping to plant our garden this weekend. This will be my 3rd. The first garden did not thrive very well, due to my lack of determination to keep it watered:( And then we moved just before what little "harvest" we would have had was due. Then last summer, our garden was doing beautifully until the deer decided it looked good enough to eat... all gone in one night! (We did get to enjoy a few beans, and some lettuce first.)

But this summer we will try again, with another fence, water and more determination:) There is a Steven Curtis Chapman song I heard once, and think it seems appropriate for Mother's Day:)

You're up all night with a screaming baby
You run all day at the speed of life
And every day you feel a little bit less
Like the beautiful woman you are

So you fall into bed when you run out of hours
And you wonder if anything worth doing got done
Oh, maybe you just don't know
Or maybe you've forgotten

You, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time
Making history with every touch and every smile
Oh, you, you may not see it now
But I believe that time will tell
How you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time

With every "I know you can do it"
Every tear that you kiss away
So many little things that seem to go unnoticed
They're just like the drops of rain over time
They become a river

And you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time
Making history with every touch and every smile
Oh, you, you may not see it now
But I believe that time will tell
How you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time