Rhythm: Finding the Calm in the Chaos

Have you ever felt you have so much to do and you’re so overwhelmed that you end up just doing nothing? Or have you realized that sometimes you just go, go, go trying to accomplish all the things you “need” to do only to feel exhausted and unaccomplished? Maybe you’ve found yourself in both of these situations!

I'm wondering if this feeling is especially prevalent at this time of year. I know I have been wanting so badly to make time to write, but I have had other priorities that needed my attention. So, today I share something I wrote this Spring {April 2014} that I needed to read again to remind myself to slow the rhythm of my routine and find calm...

Last night the kids went to bed well and on time. So I was able to put up my feet and open up a book. {Yes, a real book! More on that later.} Then… I heard footsteps coming down the stairs! I watched as the door slowly opened… I saw our large Main Coon cat emerge from upstairs and walk directly to the basement. {Breathe.} Wow, it’s so nice when everyone in the house, even the cat, knows that it’s time to rest! I went back to relaxing. I was thankful, because I know some days it feels like I’m chasing …      chasing the kids and cats and calm.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how chaos can overtake a day. Do you see that picture above? It may not look like much, but that mess in my front seat takes a lot of time to put together and even more time to put away. All that is necessary to make Mondays run smoothly! Too many days like this and life starts to feel a little out of balance. Are you making yourself  crazy with too many chaotic days?

When people mention balance, I take notice because that’s been my focus word and my goal for a few years now... or maybe more like the last decade. When I started reading “Unforced Rhythms of Grace,” I took notice right away because she started with this: “I have long loathed the word balance.” What?! But, as I read the rest of what Beth Guckenberger had to say, I entirely agreed with her perspective. She goes on to say: “A while ago, adapting a principle I read in Matthew, I exchanged ‘balance’ in my vocabulary with ‘rhythm.’ ”

Rushing, Rushing

I just read the first chapter of a new book by Lysa TerKeurst.  One sentence, consisting of only four words, grabbed my attention right away… “Admission instead of omission.”  Yes, many of us say we strive for authenticity, but honestly we are often less than truthful with both others and ourselves.   So, I’m going to be honest.  It often takes longer than I’d like to admit before I get around to tasks I myself believe to be a priority... I get busy with less important tasks. I get distracted. I get worn out.  

That is why I subscribed to Unrush Me: A 5 Day Challenge.  This morning I received Day 5...  Did I mention that it’s a five day series?  Tonight, I’m finally reading {Unrush Me} Day 1 – The Rhythm of Rush.  Better late than never… right?  Well, I am so glad I made time tonight to read that first email.  Lysa speaks truth - truth of experiences I can identify with and truths that I need to remember when I have set our life to the rhythm of rush.

I found myself rushing my husband in conversation. Rushing my kids out the door. Rushing to the next thing and then the next.  Rushing to make dinner and then rushing my people through dinner. 

Exhaustion gnawed deep places in my heart, demanding me to slow down. But how? I’ve made my decisions and now my decisions have made me.

~Lysa TerKeurst