I took a walk by myself today! And it wasn’t the coveted Mom goes to the grocery store ALONE trip. It was an errand free, no strings attached, I’m going out for some fresh air and alone time kind of walk. For a mother of two young children this is a rare and welcome occurrence.
I got up way before everyone else, checked and the weather was perfect for a stroll outside. I quietly dressed up, left The Hubby snoring in bed and headed to the quaint trail near our house. It hadn’t been but 5 minutes before it started to creep up on me. “Mom guilt”. That feeling of overwhelming guilt that Moms tend to experience whenever they enjoy something alone. “I’m doing something wrong. My children should be here too they would love this. I should go back and bring them with me when they wake up. They need this fresh air more than I do.”
It was in this moment, right as I was beginning to spiral, that I felt the Holy Spirit minister to me in a way that would transform my way of thinking and how I’m doing life as a Mom/Homemaker/Wife.
The summary of which was this: You can’t pour from an empty vessel. Take the time to refresh and refill.
The time spent on your own self care is not time stolen from your children. It is time invested in their future and wellbeing; because you cannot pour from an empty vessel. Our role as mothers is no doubt demanding on every conceivable level and that in the best possible ways. We pour out of ourselves so much love, empathy, care, energy, life lessons, discipline and direction. In many ways we are like Jesus; always teaching, always showing, always leading, always giving, always fixing, always explaining, always looking upon with compassion.
Matthew. 14:23. He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. And so just like Jesus, we too must retreat often, and walk up the mountain by ourselves to pray to the Father and be filled. Since we are giving daily, we must be filling up daily through personal time spent with God in prayer and meditation.
Now I understand that it’s not every day that you may have the opportunity to take a walk by yourself or maybe you’re not into mountain climbing like Jesus. Ask for God’s help and guidance in carving out some time for you to sit at Jesus’ feet in prayer and meditation on the Word of God.
There’ve been times I sought the quiet refuge of my bathroom to pray and ask God to give me the strength and grace I needed to make it through the day with joy and kindness, after I caught myself yelling at the children. Other times I’ve put on an educational show or movie I’ve vetted so I could sneak away to my bedroom to read my Bible and get renewed. Or to just take a nap.
Yes, the laundry basket is flowing over, the floors are due for mopping and the children are hoping for something other than last night’s dinner reheated for both lunch and dinner today. The chores will eventually get done faster and more efficiently when you are rested, refreshed and refilled. But what is even more important than all the chores is that your children have a mother that is filled with God’s goodness that she can pour out into her family and home as she does life from a place of joy and rest on the inside.
Read more of Rachel’s contributions to AllMomDoes here.
