I often get asked where I find the time to do it all: juggling various roles as a wife, stay-at-home Mum, homeschool teacher (with children who are at different stages in their education), making home cooked meals, engaging our children in various extra curricular activities, while also pursuing my own personal interests like blogging and authoring books.
The short answer: it’s by God’s grace. I firmly believe that God equips us and enables us to thrive where He has called us. He never gives us more than we can bear. With each God given responsibility comes an extra measure of grace, as His strength is made perfect in our weakness. One of the lessons I have had to learn was that God’s strength is made perfect in my weakness. Life was much more stressful before I began to practice leaning on the grace of God. I say practice because it is a conscious choice that I have to make many times a day in various situations. God’s grace has been defined as His unmerited favor and supernatural empowerment. God’s grace is freely accessible to all who call on Him and it extends to all situations, big and small. I lean on God’s grace to see me through the day when I don’t feel like getting out of bed or when I need wisdom to make a pivotal decision. I also lean on God’s grace to answer a unique question my child will ask because the Lord knows I need His supernatural empowerment to tackle some of those out of the box questions children usually have.
On my own, I don’t have it all together. I don’t have it all figured out. I’m a human being with weaknesses, shortcomings and limited strength. My ‘secret sauce’ is the grace of God. I have learnt to depend on this free gift everyday, and it always comes through for me.
2 Corinthians 12:9 “Each time He said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me”.
It used to scare me that I’m so insufficient in and of myself as a wife, a mother and a human being in general. But now, by the grace of God, my weakness does not scare me, because I have come to the knowledge and understanding that God is the One doing what needs to be done, He is only just using me. Don’t get it twisted, I say to myself, don’t short-change your family by trying to do it in your own strength (if you can even call it strength) but do it in the strength and power of the Most High God who is all knowing and all powerful and all wise. One of my favorite Bible verses is
Phillipians.2:13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.
This verse just puts so much calm in my heart and takes away stress, worry and anxiety. It takes away the fear that I will not measure up to God’s standards and fail in the assignments He has called me to. Let’s read it again: “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him”. Phillipians.2:13. What a wonderful God we serve! Once I trust and believe in Him, He works in me, making me to first of all desire to do what pleases Him. I need this everyday. For God to replace that desire please others and even myself, with the desire to please Him. I’m so excited to know that God is working in me (working, not worked, which means it is a daily, continual process) giving me the desire and hunger for righteousness, because doing what pleases God means being in right standing with Him which is righteousness. I mean if the verse had stopped right there it would already be amazing, because the act of desiring righteousness will result in a blessing from God. We see this in Matthew 5:6 where Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount says that blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
But the goodness doesn’t just stop there, amazing as it is already. After God works in me, giving me the desire to do what pleases Him, He gives me the power to do what pleases Him. He gives me the power to overcome temptation, worry, fear, confusion, low self esteem or whatever is standing in the way of me doing what pleases God. Hallelujah! He basically does it all for me! God works in me, to do what pleases Him. That means I will most certainly do what pleases Him, because He knows what pleases Him and He works in me to do it. By faith, and by His grace.
Eadie in his commentary on Ephesians writes that
“Grace (charis) is that goodwill on God’s part which not only provides and applies salvation, but blesses, cheers, and assists believers. As a wish expressed for the Ephesian Church, it does not denote mercy in its general aspect, but that many-sided favour that comes in the form of hope to saints in despondency, of joy to them in sorrow, of patience to them in suffering, of victory to them under assault, and of final triumph to them in the hour of death. And so the (writer of Hebrews) calls it grace in order to well-timed assistance.”
God’s Word says that we are saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus and not by our own efforts or works.
“God’s grace has saved you because of your faith in Christ. Your salvation doesn’t come from anything you do. It is God’s gift.” Ephesians 2:8.
God’s grace is a free gift available for those that will receive it. He has lavished His grace upon us to strengthen, empower and enable us to do His will. Please receive it through faith in Christ Jesus, walk in grace and reap the benefits.
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Read more of Rachel’s contributions to AllMomDoes here.
