welcome to love, milk & honey.

It’s no secret now that James and I followed his call into the ministry and now reside in a small town in Central Texas and have the sincere privilege of serving a wonderful church and their youth group.  Our life now is drastically different than it was 7 months ago.  On any given day you will find me with a house full of students, no makeup, piled up laundry, just dance 3 blaring on the xbox, and the biggest smile you could imagine on my face.  It’s a crazy life but it’s ours and I love it.  

Being someone who craves intentional time with my husband and recharges best when I’m alone with a bit of quiet and a hot earl grey, the constant chaos has made me extremely aware of the importance of setting boundaries when it comes to time and sticking to them.  I learned quite quickly that if James and I weren’t pouring into ourselves, we would have nothing to give to the students we are called to serve.  I become crabby and James, well, he just hibernates.

You may not have 10 youth over at your house on a regular basis but I’m wiling to bet you each have something that consumes you.  Hear me when I say that the things that consume you may not always be bad… we love our youth like crazy and hanging out with them is a blast… but when the only time I saw my husband without someone else in the room was in the morning before he left and at night when we finally head to bed and the only alone time I got was when I was in the shower…too much of a good thing became a bad thing.  It could be a job, a hobby, a friendship, an in-law (oh yes, I went there), your children, or even the T.V.  Whatever it is, it’s time to claim ownership of it and be sure that you are the one determining the boundaries instead of the other way around.

Take time this week to make yourself aware of where your time is most spent then measure it up against your priorities.  If they don’t mesh, make some changes.  Harness that schedule of yours, set some healthy boundaries and then… breath a sigh of relief.