"Safe Me"

Have you ever thought about the things that make you feel safe?  

Last night we had a HUGE thunderstorm - the kind that blows the rain right in, soaking the floor and spraying everything with water.  The lightning bolts were amazing, and the rapid thunder booms shook the house.  

My 3 year old was woken up, not by the storm, but by his parents frantically running through the house slamming windows and turning on the lights to find all the supplies needed to sop up the water that had blown in.  After all the exciting activity he, understandably, had a difficult time falling back asleep.

After lying in bed with him for a while, I tried to pull my arm away (it had fallen asleep).  He quickly  pulled it back requesting "safe me."  He wasn't asking that I do anything to stop the storm - he just wanted to feel protected from it.

I realized while comforting him, that I needed the exact same thing.  

Our week has been a whirlwind of activity.  At the doctor's office alone we dealt with permanent marker to the eye, walking Pneumonia, a paralyzed face (Bell's Palsy), and we are waiting for Lyme disease test results.   Add to that the fun activities brought by two different groups of visitors that we haven't seen in years, and packing for our upcoming trip to Nashville. 

In the franticness of daily activity, I need to feel as if everything will be okay, regardless of my circumstances.

What makes me feel safe?  

• Knowing that my children are happy
  
• Spending time with close friends and family
  
• Having an organized home
  
• Accomplishing the goals I set for myself
  

 . . . but most of all, I need for God to "safe me."  When my day is busy, and I feel as if I am constantly playing catch-up, then it is most important for me to spend time in prayer and Bible study, but, unfortunately, those are the days when I am least likely to follow through.  

So - How to feel safe in the middle of life's daily storms.  Here is my plan.  This process serves two purposes: it gives me a decent amount of quiet time to think through my priorities, plan our meals and activities, but more importantly, it gives me a chance to place my plans before God - who often throws them all to the wind because His plans are better.

     1 - Wake up before my family every weekday.  This has been my goal for a while, but my implementation has been inconsistent.

     2 - Turn on the coffee-pot (my morning energy).  Skipping this step is not pretty!

     3 - Hop in the shower

     4 - Sit down with my coffee, calendar, to-do list and Bible.  My minimum goal is to spend 15 min. in scripture and 15 min. praying through my day's plans.

     5 - Take on the day!

CS Lewis (one of my father's favorite authors) put it this way "It comes the very moment you wake up each morning.  All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals.  And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in."