Monday, October 4, 2010

Getting Back in the Saddle

Well, I must say I am a little disappointed in the lack of response to my invitation to introduce yourself, but life goes on. Maybe it is just the two reading this blog an awfully lot! :)

But I have a question for you today. How do you make yourself do something you do not really want to do?

You see, summer is over, the crazy month of September is over, and it is time to get into routines and patterns, settle down in some sort of way. October is always a month that my husband travels in. I thought perhaps this year would be different since he is not going back "over there" for awhile, but nope - he's off to another end of the world doing something else. So October is gearing up to be what it has always been for our family - a month to settle down, to find routines and patterns, and to set the tone for the rest of the school year.

The problem is that I am running low on the ability to make myself step into things I should be doing.

I need to clean out the fridge.

I need to cover the gardens.

I need to clean out cupboards and go through winter clothes.

I need to simply clean this house!

I need to organize my kids so they get up on time, go to bed on time, make their beds, eat their breakfasts, finish their homework.

But it goes deeper than that. I need to again make time for regularly sitting down to read, pray, and study God's word. It is amazing how easy it is to break a habit and how difficult it is to regain a habit.

How do you go about starting up routines in life when you've fallen out of doing them? When all you feel like is sitting and staring off into space? How do you get back in the saddle again?

Ever been there? What got you through it?

4 comments:

The Guthries said...

Thanks for the comment over on my blog.
In answer to your question, I have no prescription. Maybe set a goal of one thing to be done per day until it is all done? Lots of grace with yourself as well :0)

Carin

Anonymous said...

Haha, if I want to get something done, I absolutely have to write it down on a to-do list.

Case in point: I have been MEANING to pull up a chair and grab a cup o' joe and comment on your last blog post... but even leaving the browser window open for days wasn't enough. Didn't write it down, didn't do it!

I am also the kind of person to write things down after the fact, just so that I can cross them off the list. :)

Unknown said...

Nicolette - I am so like that too, right down to the writing things down just to cross them off!

That will likely work for getting my house clean... maybe I could write on there
1. Sit down for a cup of coffee with God at 10 am.

Might work, you know. With our new schedule with a highschooler, mornings come earlier and evenings tend to go later. I'm wondering if God wouldn't mind not being first thing in the morning and would prefer to have coffee with me at a decent time in the morning once the kids are out to school and the first load of laundry is running in the machine. I'd be more awake, and it is quiet in the house then.

Alan & Beth McManus said...

I'm with Nicolette. I love lists! To make it look like I'm accomplishing more, I break the big things into lists of steps or parts. Then I can feel oh so accomplished at the end of the day.

I think God wants your first fruits, not necessarily your first hour. I would think sitting down for time with Him when you are most awake and able to really focus on Him would be way more important to Him than yawning and half-sleeping through your time together!