This laughing grandma has tumbled onto a relentless treadmill, unable to find the kill switch or enough oxygen to do more than giggle. I won’t bore you with the whys and whats, but suffice it to say…I’m tired.
Overwhelmed by life’s demands, I hear God whisper, “Take a deep breath and be still.” Be still? That’s funny! Doesn’t he see the thousand things I have to do? The list is a mile long and people need things from me. And then…
I walk through the front door after a long day of pandemic-style teaching – hanging out with 300 mask-wearing, help-needing, fidget-sitting sixth graders – carrying a bag full of papers to grade and plans to write, and there sit two grandkids at the kitchen table…happy as clams, playing with playdough.
“Grandma!” Eyes big and smiles bigger, “Look what I made! Can you play with us?”
Oh boy. Grandma has work to do, dinner to make, and a bathroom to clean.
Bella puts a pink head on her snowman, while two-year-old Sutton tries cutting out a fish with a cookie cutter…unsuccessfully. Putting the to-do list aside, I plop into the chair next to him, grab a mixed-up ball of playdough, and begin flattening it on the table. Over the next several minutes we have a sweet, simple conversation about who makes fish and cats and kids…and then it’s back on the treadmill. Ten minutes. Ten minutes to focus on our awesome Creator. Ten minutes that remind me of my blessings. Ten minutes that God used to refresh my soul.
Here’s the thing. If I want to be clothed with strength and dignity, and laugh without fear of the future, then I have to pay attention for opportunities to hit the kill switch…to purposefully let go of earthly demands, even for 10 minutes. Even though my to-do list is filled with worthy tasks and people I love, God is my oxygen. Without him, I’m no good to anyone. He gives rest to my soul and renews my strength. He is my “kill switch.”
The Bible says that there is a season and a time for every activity under heaven:
a time to cook and a time to eat out;
a time to clean the bathroom and a time to soak in the tub;
a time to work and time to have coffee with grandpa.
a time to have the whole family over for gameday and a time to be alone.
a time to drink water and a time to drink wine.
Okay. I’m paraphrasing.
But the point is, we grandmas can be pretty hard on ourselves, allowing guilt to guide us…instead of God. We are blessed to be needed by the ones we love and, honestly, we wouldn’t want it any other way. But sometimes we need to give our hearts and minds permission to “be still” – even if it’s in aisle five of Walmart.
Thank you, Jesus, for placing a sanctuary of silence in my heart that keeps me focused on the good stuff; a warm bed and food in the pantry…friends and family who love me and friends and family to love…birds at the feeder, flowers on my table, and the new season of Great British Baking Show to watch. It’s all good. Really good in fact. And I’m thankful for every earthly gift. But none of it compares to the moments when God stops my treadmill, floods my soul with oxygen, and reminds me of what matters most…who matters most…and why I’m here in the first place.
KRISTI is the author of the Before books and coloring books for children and the Your Soul To Keep one-year prayer book for parents of adults. She writes to inspire parents and grandparents to shine the joy of Jesus into the lives of their families and to laugh without fear of the future (Proverbs 31:25). She and her husband Tim live in Iowa where they love doing life with their sons and daughters-in-law, six grandbabies, and two very spoiled dogs.