Having a flexible schedule was always a must growing up in the ministry. It was something I learned at a young age and have carried it with me into my marriage and have been very thankful to be able to apply it in raising my children. Raising this crew requires much flexibility!
Having a daily schedule or routine is a wonderful way to keep your sanity, but sometimes life will throw things at you that require you to alter that routine. Things like children getting sick and needing to go to the doctor in the middle of your school day, running out of milk, or needing to pick up or drop off kids for soccer practice. Sometimes making school more fun for the kids requires changing your daily routine. Sometimes I will wake up to a warm sunny day in the spring or the fall and decide that it is a perfect day to go to the zoo. Having a flexible schedule is a wonderful thing!
I have found, however, that flexibility is not something to be used when trying to have a daily quiet time. For me, it must come early in the morning, first in my schedule, and top priority, no matter how flexible I am willing or able to be. There is no squeezing it in elsewhere in my day. At no other time in my daily routine will I have more freedom, more quiet or less interruptions than in the early hours of the day.
So, how I can I achieve being pious in this area? More often than not I feel like I could be pious later in the day when I've had more sleep. After all, wouldn't I function better as a mother if I had more sleep? Can I trust that I will find that block of time where I can be uninterrupted long enough to have a productive and meaningful quiet time? Not likely!
The only way that I can ensure that I will indeed keep this most important time of learning and hearing from the Lord, is that I put aside my need for flexibility and maintain order in my schedule even if it is only long enough to have this precious time with Jesus.
Susanna Wesley was a woman who thrived off of having an orderly day. She would get her husband up at the same time every day, had meals at the same time every day, and had prayers and devotions at the same time every single day. It was said that even as she measured her hours, so she measured the porridge that she gave her husband every morning!
I have been reading a biography of Susanna's life written by Sandy Dengler. When Susanna's husband Samuel questioned her about her need to be so pious about everything, she gave this reply ~
"A regular and orderly day provides that nothing will be neglected.You might well feel more pious later, but keeping to a strict order ensures that you'll be pious, whether you feel like it at the moment or not. One must never trust whim and feeling."
2 comments:
I read a biog of Susanna's a long time ago and have remembered a lot of memorable qualities about her, self-discipline being among them. I think it's sad that a woman has to "get her husband up every day," don't you? Where's HIS self-discipline? Was he the one that squandered whatever money came in, or was that a brother? Anyway, I wholeheartedly agree with You. There is no better time in the day to spend quietly with Jesus. I think it says "you ARE number one, Jesus," in my life and I love starting the day with you. I like to hear from Him before anyone else! On the days I've said "later," it has seldom happened.
Yes, it was her husband Samuel who squandered all their money. He was not a very disciplined man.
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