A Lesson in sharing

Hello Readers, 

I hope the week has been good to you. If you have already started your homeschool year, you may come to appreciate this post a little more than those who have yet to start back. If you haven't started your homeschool year, take a moment and digest what I'm about to say. It isn't too pretty, but the end is spectacular!

As mom's (and dad's) we can become overwhelmed with all that life asks of us. From our children wanted the fanciest gadget to doctors appointments, vision check-ups, teeth cleanings, and not to mention the favors that are asked of us by our family and friends. 

​Yes. I'm greedy with my time. I have an agenda from which I work. I schedule things that need to be scheduled and seldom do I get that list finished in any given day. Why? Because other things pop up and life doesn't always work around my schedule. You'll recall our recent vehicle adventures as a prime example. 

But I'm speaking to you today about sharing. 

Sharing our time is sometimes more valuable than any gadget you can purchase.
It's being an ear when someone needs to talk. It's being a shoulder when they need to cry. It's a hug. A laugh. A hello in passing. Sharing our time is the greatest gift we can give. It costs nothing to have, but is highly valuable. We have a lifetime of it, but we do not always realize it. Most importantly, it can make the difference in another person's life by simply giving it to them. 

Time. What a silly notion really. This invisible yet molding 'thing' that our lives operate off of, can be wasted, spent, shared, given, counted, sold, destroyed, delayed, and even procrastinated... But try as you might, it cannot be saved.
It can't be stored up in a container from which you reach, nor can it be shelved for later use.   

During a conversation with my middle son, he asked me why I don't spend as much time with him as I used to. Why I am so caught up with his older sister that I don't do things with him that I used to do. This hurt. 

Bad. 

When I discovered that he was right, I was crushed. I had been putting such an emphasis on getting our oldest enrolled in college and trying to direct her newly found adult phase into some resemblance of maturity, that I had placed everything else on hold, like I was saving it for when I was through with our daughter. 

Yes, I even tried to rationalize my actions within myself as something like, "I have to help her right now because she is going through things our other children have yet to discover... I can help them later."

And then Jesus spoke to me. "What if later comes and it's too late? What if later never comes?"
Talk about an eye opener! I could feel my heart molding back together. I knew what I had to do. 

I had to remember to share. 

Share myself with all of my children. I had to share my time with them together and individually. I had to remember that life is still happening all around me. Time does not stop, even when life is happening to each of them in a different way. I had to remember that things are going to happen in their lives and I will not always be there to guide them - that they must make decisions for themselves based on what they know and how they feel. 

If you have found yourself feeling stuck between a rock and a hard place lately. If you have been told that you are spending too much time with a person, a job, a recreation, a book, or any other time-consuming activity... Take a moment and evaluate the situation. You may discover that you are not sharing! 

Until next time, 
LaVonda