Quiet time = "dry docking" my soul?

Dear Diary,

In my last blog posts I wrote about my recent trip to Switzerland where I learnt that I must not compare, that God will help me shrink my fears and that I can change, one feather at the time. But there was one more thought that I wanted to share with you and the photo to go with it is right here...

It's a beautiful scenery, isn't it? It was indeed a very peaceful day on Lake Zürich, just after I saw that beautiful swan and clearly, there were no storms in sight. But I know it doesn't always look like this and some of these boats do experience rough weather occasionally. Looking out on the lake, I thought about boats needing regular maintenance and if there was a leak, a boat would surely sink.

These days, life has become undeniably busy and there seem to be far too many "storms" or troubles in this world. In the stormy waters of our busy days, my mind or mood seems to have a tendency to "sink" a little more each day, unless I do something about it. So, perhaps it stands to reason that our minds, especially if they start feeling like they are "leaking" might need some regular maintenance just like these boats. Having a boat on dry dock for regular maintenance prevents it from sinking and that's exactly what "quiet time" does for me! Yes, life can get pretty rough sometimes and "storms" are inevitable, but having a quiet time is like having my mind on "dry dock" where I can get some much needed downtime and do some repairs! Just a few minutes of quiet time daily seem to keep me afloat these days. 

So there you go...looking at Lake Zürich, I took my last learning for this holiday: Boats need regular maintenance and I believe so do we! A few minutes of quiet time in the morning can prevent us from sinking during the day. What do you think? You are most welcome to leave me a comment below. From my side of the ocean, I wish you many happy quiet times and...

...SMOOTH SAILING this week!

"I've told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and
assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to
experience difficulties. But take heart! I've conquered the world." 

John 16:33 (MSG)

(Photo is my own.)

CHANGE happens one feather at the time...

Dear Diary

My blog site is called "Diary of a non-perfect mom", for good reason, because I have never been a perfect mom. Not even nearly! But with God's help I am finally getting better at it. He has a way of changing us if we take some time to spend with Him and I am so grateful for that now. "Quiet times" have brought about a lot of good changes in my life. So I would love to encourage other mom's not to give up either. Those sleepless nights will be over some day and the workload does tend to get less as our kids grow up. I suppose we will always worry about them, but I have noticed that the "stress" of raising kids does get less as they get older. What seems to be hugely important though, is how we react towards our children when we are under stress and I haven't always been good at that.

But like I said, I have been and am still busy changing with the help of more frequent quiet times now and during a recent trip to Europe, I felt that God was nudging me about a few things. Jealousy and fears, for example, as per my last two blog posts, but one day, while taking a stroll along Lake Zürich on a beautiful late summer day, I felt as if He was saying, "be patient with yourself". It happened when I saw this beautiful swan with a feather in his mouth and for some reason, to me, it just looked as if he had just plucked his last grey feather and I had to smile while I quickly took this photo:

You see, I have a way of being rather harsh on myself and change preferably happens instantly. So, if I decide that I would like to be a better mom, I would love to become that better mom today, yes please! But looking at that beautiful swan, I knew what God was saying to me - change happens one feather at the time! Change happens gradually and I need to learn to be patient with myself. I have definitely been an ugly duckling mother once, but with God's help, I've been plucking one feather at the time and given enough time, you never know...I might just turn into a swan! 😉

So that was my little moment no. 3 during this holiday and I hope you like it. Perhaps it was just a very personal moment, but I hope that it might have meaning to other moms also. By the way,   when I got back home, I discovered that I had actually a downloaded copy of the "Ugly Duckling" story on my iPad...coincidence? Who knows! But what I do know is that during this holiday, I have been reminded that I must not compare, that God will help me shrink my fears and that I can change...one feather at the time! And that's not the end yet, but for now...

...I wish you a VERY HAPPY week!

"Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but 

let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you

think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is 
good and pleasing and perfect."

Romans 12:2 (NLT)

(Photo is my own.)