Overcoming Busy

What Matters Most – Inviting Her In

June 15, 2011 by Marci

There may be no blogger or friend who stretches me and inspires me like Teri Lynne Underwood. I am so excited to have her share with you today What Matters Most.

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So much of life these days is frantic, rushed, hurried.  And the older I get, the more I find myself resisting that sense of urgency that seems to rule our days.   Instead, I’m drawn to a slower pace, a less busy lifestyle.  More time to read and take a nap, to try to new recipes or watch “Gone with the Wind” with my girl.  Certainly there are tasks to be completed, things that must be done … but even then, I long for a heart that is focused on savoring moments not checking things off the never-ending list.

When Marci asked me to share in this incredible series about “What Matters Most,” my first thought was simply this:

What matters most to me is raising a daughter who loves the Lord and sees her life as an offering to Him.

Not a small desire, huh?  But it is my heart.  I fail … often and big.   Then I get up and start again, not in my strength but in His.  Along the way, I’ve learned the truth of this quote:

“My father didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.”
- Clarence Budinton Kelland

If I want my eleven-year-old to love the Lord and see her life as an offering to Him, I can’t just tell her to do that … I have to invite her into my own journey of learning to do the same.

Some of the ways this happens in our house are:

1. Sharing my quiet time space with her in the mornings and reading the Bible together.
2. Encouraging her to write devotions and Bible studies for her friends … and showing her how I do the same.
3. Cleaning with her as she learns to manage a home.
4. Allowing her to do things I could do faster and better myself … but encouraging her along the way.

She’s invited into my life … from folding clothes to studying for Sunday School.   Even when it’s inconvenient, even when I’m tired, even when she asks the thousandth question.  Because investing in her is a huge part of What Matters Most.

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Teri Lynne writes from her home in south Georgia in between driving the taxi for her 11-year-old daughter and helping her pastor-husband however he requests.   She describes herself as a girl who longs to connect the hearts of women with the heart of God.   She writes daily at Teri Lynne Underwood:  Encouraging Lives Where the Sacred and Secular Collide.  In May 2011 she released the eBook, Parenting from the Overflow, which inspires moms to parent out of the abundance of their relationship with God.  You can find more information about her book on the Parenting from the Overflow website.   And, of course, she’s on Twitter and Facebook!