Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines it this way:
(by the way, my FAVORITE dictionary…yes, I’m a nerd because I have a favorite dictionary!!!)
D I L I G E N C E : steady application of any kind; constant effort to accomplish what is undertaken; exertion of body or mind without unnecessary delay or sloth; care; steadily applied; prosecuted with care and constant effort
Whew! I’m exhausted.
If I’m not being diligent, what am I doing? Procrastinating?
Procrastination. It is such an easy trap to fall into especially being a stay-at-home mommy. I don’t have deadlines. Feed the kids and wipe their booties. That is all I HAVE to do on any given day. If I don’t want to clean the bathroom in the morning, there is always the afternoon, or during nap, or tomorrow, or next week. I have an AMAZING husband who gives me so much grace when the shower doesn’t get cleaned because it has been a crazy day…how often, though, do I take advantage of that grace and push the shower cleaning to tomorrow?
Let’s be honest here. The opposite of diligence is not procrastination, it is…wait for it…it is an ugly word…L A Z I N E S S. Yuck! I loathe that word. If I’m not being diligent with my time, let’s just face the facts, I’m being lazy.
Sometimes the shower doesn’t get cleaned and that is not because of laziness, but because of priorities. Sometimes it is more important to play play-dough with my 3-year-old or stretch out on the floor and be used as a jungle gym for my 11-month-old than it is to clean the shower.
Too often, sadly, it is laziness that I have allowed to creep into my daily routine. Ouch. Honesty isn’t always pretty.
Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work at it as if you were working for the Lord and not for man.” WHATEVER you do…that means all…everything…every moment of every day. If I were to log how I spent every minute of the day, how would I measure up?
Sometimes we do need rest. Sometimes we do need me time. God rested on the 7th day. It is ok to sit on the couch and watch 19 Kids and Counting. The question I ask myself is, how much of this am I doing?
I want it to be said of me that the way I spent my time was purposeful, diligent, wise. I don’t spend my time that way now. Some days I do conquer laziness and diligence wins, but not as often as I would like.
If I want the use of my time to be described as
P U R P O S E F U L
D I L I G E N T
W I S E
then I have to start somewhere.
My starting place: the oldest gets up at 630am, the baby gets up at 830am. In this season I have no excuse and must have a quiet time in the mornings while my big boy is resting on the couch watching a movie. I also need to do something with my oldest during the baby’s morning nap. I don’t need to jump on the computer right away, but we can do something fun together or clean together or even watch a movie together. We just need to do something together. He needs that mommy time. (and I need the practice if I’m going to attempt homeschooling!)
2 purposeful baby steps towards diligence with my time. I can conquer laziness in these areas and once that is done, more baby steps to follow!
Laziness: this is your warning. You are being squeezed out of my daily routine. You cannot co-exist with diligence and I choose diligence. Goodbye laziness. Have fun somewhere else!
(The picture of the bathroom is NOT my bathroom. I wouldn't mind having that bathroom, though!)
No comments:
Post a Comment