Comments on Conversion Diary: Balance requires sacrifice

This is so helpful. We women are so good at putti...

2009-11-10T09:47:33.271-06:00

This is so helpful. We women are so good at putting the "housework" first rather than prayer. It is so easy to get out of balance and then we wonder why we get stressed.

For me, most of the time "balance" is just a word,...

2009-11-08T08:49:39.197-06:00

For me, most of the time "balance" is just a word, it has been a long time since I felt truly satisfied with my level of commitment towards my daily responsibilities or completely happy and relaxed. Except for those moments when I pray an feel God's presence everywhere. Balance is indeed hard to find and keep.

Liturgy of the Hours

Thank you for this. I identify with your struggle...

2009-10-28T22:20:40.797-05:00

Thank you for this. I identify with your struggle of putting your feet up with your husband vs getting that last bit of stuff done. Typically, I use "family movie night" as time to get stuff done while my husband watches movies with the kids. Lately, in trying to find balance, I've started sitting and watching with the family and really enjoying my time. Its so tough to find this balance, especially when we, as women, take on so much responsibility.

Awesome post. Thanks. So many times recently whe...

2009-10-27T07:15:11.229-05:00

Awesome post. Thanks. So many times recently when I wanted to get this done, or that done I've had to mentally wrestle for a few moments and just say "sit already!". And for that I have precious time with my husband in the evening after a day when we're usually so hectic with our full time jobs. I've become ok with things unfinished. Now I just need to apply this with my devotional time. Thanks again for reminding me of where my priority needs to lie.

I've been having a rough time lately and I just re...

2009-10-26T22:28:05.502-05:00

I've been having a rough time lately and I just read Especially Heather's post from today and the 2 put together is a grand slam for me. Both are exactly what I needed to hear today. Not because I've been busy today, but I've been feeling over-loaded in general and need to seriously look at my priorities, what my responsibilities are, and let go of some of the things that don't fit. I don't know what those things are yet but you'd better believe that I'm going to start to set a mid-day prayer time to re-start my day. I'm certain that God will let me know what I'm supposed to get rid of!

This is a very heavy theme in my life as well thes...

2009-10-26T20:43:35.086-05:00

This is a very heavy theme in my life as well these days. I am in the midst of reading Holly Pierlot's book A Mother's Rule of Life, which is centered on creating order for the sake of our vocation as married women and mothers in much the same way that religious orders do. It's like you say, scheduling my life around my prayer time. But it's more than that. If there is ample time in the schedule for everything, and of course we find it shocking how much time we actually have vs. how much time we actually waste, then there is ample time to sit and chat with our husbands for a while. She points out that God is a God of order, not necessarily rigidity, but order. She says also to be careful not to let the family serve the schedule, the schedule serves the family. I LOVE that! I highly recommend this book, it is so thorough in its approach to getting this balance back in our lives!

My husband and I were talking the other night abou...

2009-10-26T14:29:35.370-05:00

My husband and I were talking the other night about how our culture creates so many barriers to contemplation. We are of course thankful for the technological advances that allow us to live longer, access more information, and be more productive...but we also lament the constant sense of urgency that pervades each day.

I have a feeling that as this generation grows weary of spinning its wheels, the spiritual disciplines will see a resurgence and people will be drawn to the lost arts of contemplation and prayer.

As always, I think you're just a few steps ahead! :-)

Thanks for the post. Very encouraging, as always.

I needed this. I find it SO HARD to sit and not a...

2009-10-26T14:05:23.324-05:00

I needed this. I find it SO HARD to sit and not accomplish anything. Even when I'm sitting with my family, I feel like I need to have something productive in my hands.

I have made it a point to live this way and have d...

2009-10-26T13:18:30.798-05:00

I have made it a point to live this way and have done so for decades. However, as you and Confused Homemaker point out, the rhythm can get interrupted and a renewed commitment becomes necessary. Augustine Ichiro Okumura, OCD, has a chapter in Awakening to Prayer called "Anthropology of Prayer." In it he disusses the "prayer that cuts." Your "hard stops" reminded me of what he said. Using the image of the bamboo shoot he says, "The part of the bamboo that stretches upward symbolizes the course of life, and the joints could represent the "prayer that cuts." He goes on to say it is very important to provide ourselves with numerous segments. He also mentions the sacrificial element, "What constitutes the common essence of all prayer is this state of death to self that...renders us 'alive to God in Jesus Christ.' There's more, and I recommend this book. It's a modern classic.

One thing I've come to appreciate about breastfeed...

2009-10-26T10:29:34.653-05:00

One thing I've come to appreciate about breastfeeding is the "hard stops" that it demands. It's part of God's perfect design to make a mom slow down for her physical and mental health.

My husband & I have been talking about this subjec...

2009-10-26T07:49:41.513-05:00

My husband & I have been talking about this subject. We had a very good rhythm of life & lately we've let that rhythm get away from us. Thanks for the reminder that balance does indeed require sacrifice & action on our part. A big issue for us is checking one more thing online for work, when really nothing online is that important that it can't wait.

Thanks for re-running this. I have worked at find...

2009-10-26T05:03:36.487-05:00

Thanks for re-running this. I have worked at finding a balance between all of the to-do's in life. I am trying to teach my kids balance too - even with my time. There are times to interrupt and times to be patient. :) The best days are those when there are still to-do's unfinished on my list but I had great conversations with my kids and husband.