Mama Needs A Do-Overনমুনা

The Plan

Making plans to accomplish a goal is not always a simple task. Some are easy… you want to make cookies, you find the recipe. Just go down the list of ingredients that someone else has put together, and follow the instructions. But when it is a more personal goal, like overcoming a trial, we have to figure it out ourselves.

You may be shooting for a huge change, like moving to a new house or altering your whole diet. (Diet is such a small word for such a huge impact—when I stopped eating sugar, I thought I wouldn’t make it through the day. #addictionisbad) Or you may be trying to make small adjustments, like doing a better job of keeping the kitchen clean or getting through emails without it taking your entire day.

The process of making any kind of change is the same. Write it down, then pray, lean on Scripture, and prepare. And yes, be willing to change yourself, always. I don’t want you to be overwhelmed by this! Don’t try to become a completely different person. It will burn you out and you won’t make it. Why not tackle one thing at a time? Do something small to start with, like keeping the kitchen counter free of clutter for two weeks (did I just hear a gasp?). That’s not easy, but it is a small change. It might take all your energy to retrain your family not to drop everything there and leave it. Old habits die hard. Make your plan and share it with your family. Then stay on it. I promise it is possible, and you may discover that you are the toughest nut to crack when you find yourself continuing to set things down instead of putting them away like you envisioned. That’s when you ask God for help. He cares about those little things because they make room for the good He wants to pour into your life!

Once you have created a new habit, move on to something else. You will be surprised at how much those little changes affect the bigger problems. Once your kids get the consistent message that nothing lands on the counter that doesn’t belong there, they may just start doing that organically in other areas of the house. And even if that doesn’t happen, you will be more peaceful just having that one victory, and you’ll have more confidence for the next change you want to make.

You’re not alone. God has perfect ideas. He is the author of all order and organization, and He will help you.