learning in the cycle

Sometimes the days blur together, and things that feel like they happened ages ago were really just last week. That’s how life has felt lately. I haven’t been overly busy (though I definitely create extra work for myself by procrastinating), but it seems like life thinks I have.

This week, I’ve been reflecting on ways I can grow in this season of life. Too often, I get caught doing the same things over and over, expecting different results. I feel like God keeps showing me a way out of that cycle, and I’m so thankful for His patience.

So I don’t stay stuck in the same place, I wrote down some goals and have been trying to stick to them. Even if I don’t hit them all perfectly, it’s good to have something to work toward. At the top of my list is making my time with God a true priority—not just something to check off, but both a need and a desire. I realize that, too often, I’ve let other things crowd in and distract me from that relationship. But it can’t truly be the foundation of everything I do unless I want it to be.

I’ve also been trying to see myself from the kids’ perspective and ask myself if I’d be happy with what I see. That’s shown me a lot I still need to work on. We’ve been encouraging the kids to be consistent, to do things well, and to finish on time. I want to live that out in my own life too, so I’m not being a hypocrite. It’s easy to forget how closely they watch and imitate us, and I want to be sure I’m modeling habits I’d want to see in them.

I know God places us in situations where our flaws get exposed, and for me, the past six years have been exactly that. It hasn’t been an easy process, but I hope I’m learning the lessons He wants me to.