40 Days of Freedom

Confession: I have never given anything up for Lent before.  I love the idea of a constant reminder of what Jesus sacrificed so that I might be saved, but giving up chocolate or coffee or {fill in the blank} fell into the same category as New Year's resolutions;  people saying they are going (or not going) to do this or that, mostly just to say so.  But lately I have felt a divine tug on my heart for a fresh, renewed focus on what is really important in life.  This type of self-examination forces one to analyze the way they spend their time and for me, how it is effecting my relationships and my walk with the Lord.  Maybe it is because I have been profoundly moved by this new baby, and her "freshness" into the world. She is unencumbered by all of the "stuff" this world has to offer. She is lucky.  Even as I type this, she is sleeping on my legs and the sound of her soft breath is Peacefulness, personified.  

Her newness has inspired my renewal.

So my epiphany just happened to coincide with "Fat Tuesday" and I came up with the idea of have 40 days of Freedom in my life (although I certainly hope that by the end of the 40 days it will just be the new normal) where I can focus on my relationship with Jesus, with my husband and family, and spend time doing things that will help my spirit to thrive, rather than cause my mind to feel dull and my spirit void.  So here they are:

1. Renewing my mind. 

     I'm a reader, or at least I used to be. I could give you 110 reasons/excuses that I don't read anything {other than my Bible} anymore, but I'd rather just focus now on how I'm going to start again- somewhere familiar, an old friend of sorts: 

Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster. 

2. Renewing my spirit.

    I'm going to memorize a verse a week {I know that sounds very 5th grade...which it is, because that is what I did with my 5th graders when I was teaching, but it is what it is for now} My first verse is even kind of a cheat since I posted it on my refrigerator a few months ago, and have read it every day, several times a day...but it's fitting for this period of my life, so it's first:

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful."   Col. 3:15

3. Eliminate distractions and clutter

     My first step was saying a big fat goodbye to Facebook. Although I still think there are good things about it, Sean has never had one and I sort of think that's cool.  It is a distraction, so I'm over it. I'm also limiting the amount of T.V. I watch. {I can just hear Sean celebrating...we only have the first like 10 channels..if he had it his way we would not have cable at all, but sadly- I LOVE that Jack will watch his shows and I can work or clean ect. and lets be honest...I like watching the Bachelor. there I said it. oh well. no one is perfect}

      In recent days the "quaintness" of our 2 bedroom condo has become overwhelmingly obvious to me, causing me to have mini breakdowns on several occasions.  Two adults + two babies + all their toys/gear in very tight quarters = my squished mind grapes and one huge {seemingly endless} lesson in patience. Maybe I'm not getting the message? hmm. more on that another time. The point is, I am making a very concerted effort to keep our house as clean and neat as possible.  I know it won't be perfect, because I'm running on next to no sleep at all, while literally running around all day after Jack- amidst piles of laundry and the never-ending task of feeding and changing the new bundle. So I'm trying to stay realistic with my expectations.

So there it is. My first ever Lent-ish challenge to myself.