Routine is a familiar presence that ushers us into a sense of welcomed normalcy. An interruption, change and rerouting causes us to stand back and look at life on display in our minds much like a preview of a movie, but this time of what once was. When our world began rotating in an another direction, so did this routine we naturally crave. As I wrote this post last year, Pandemic Locusts, sometimes things are eaten but,

I have to choose to be hope-filled despite my inclination to lose hope.

Before our world turned upside down, creating a place filled with hope was already on my heart. This place is a hope-filled reminder you are not alone: sister, friend, mother, daughter, cousin, grandma, niece, aunt. Perhaps you are here for the first time and we have not yet met, welcome! My prayer is that you will be encouraged and know that despite what is whirling around us, Christ is our firm foundation,

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock (Matthew 7:24-25).

The practice of building our homes on the foundation of Christ is allowing him to be in our moments, the profound, simple, beautiful and brutal. Change is nothing new. We all experience it and react individually. Countless times as a mom I have had to reimagine our moments and days here in our home. For reasons out of my control I had to make many choices to allow our day to move forward and not slip away. I had a plan and then it changed. Does that sound familiar? Then the snowstorm hits, the flu, appointments (and forgotten ones) a playdate cancelled or a pandemic hits. As I was thinking about these moments, I remember a long-time friend encouraged me with some very simple words after a major snow storm had hit. At the time we had 2 boys around 3 and 5 years old. My husband and I shook up our routine and took them outside way past bedtime and they played and played. This may sound like an odd example, but if you have any sort of routine with young ones and you change it up, there is a doubt that lingers whether it is worth the effort. She reminded me how important it was to allow those moments to naturally unfold. Don’t get caught up in the demands of the routine, go out and have the ‘play in the snow’ moments. We did. My boys may not remember that night, but I do and with joy.

Recently, I went back through some family photos. I realized just how many were in the snow. In those moments the math books remained closed, history became of thing of the past (momentarily) and creating memories in the snow top priority. I don’t regret it, I will admit though there were days it was hard to let go of my plan. I am glad I did. This is what they will remember, not what school was missed. Enjoy the ‘play in the snow’ moments when possible. Routine is good, but so is flexibility.

How have you managed unplanned moments with your family? Take pictures, write it down. One day those pictures will become a memory from the past. A beautiful reminder that as mothers on a mission and our foundations on Christ our rock, the unplanned becomes a lived reality of God’s plan.

Enjoy this song by Jeremy Camp this week Keep Me In The Moment. This will bless you! Play it loud!