Joy Overflowing

I confess, I've been a bit bogged down lately. The girls haven't been napping in sync so I get NO time alone during the days, they both have colds, Adrienne is getting 4 teeth, and Brooke is, well, almost 3... enough said! I love my kids and my life so much very much but it's overwhelming to be "on duty" for the ENTIRE day without even a tiny break. When the evenings get here, I feel just completely done for the day, even though there are several hours left of my day.

Fed up with myself and how I was feeling, I really prayed and asked God to give me true joy in raising my daughters. Happiness is when they are napping on the same schedule. Happiness is when they are completely content and well behaved all day. Happiness is when I can steal a few minutes of solitude in the midst of my day. However, I don't want happiness, it's not enough. Joy is when I am at peace even in the midst of the most difficult of difficult days.

Well, I am so proud to say that I am experiencing the joy of the Lord now! I have had a sweet and refreshing day with my two daughters and I feel so wonderful inside. Much of my afternoon was spent playing Candy Land, Memory, and Chutes and Ladders (over and over again) so my housework is far from complete. That's okay though. Adrienne has been extremely grumpy, thanks to a combination of a nasty cold and her teeth coming in, but that, too, is alright. I was placed on this earth to serve God and to follow His will and by raising my children, I am doing just that.

God has been filling my head with thoughts of Him throughout the day and that, my friends, is the only place that TRUE joy comes from. The song that I've been singing an awful lot of lately is, "The Joy of the Lord is My Strength." It's SO true! I have come to determine that staying home is the hardest job in the world but with the joy of the Lord, it can be done and it can even be done well!!