Hamster on a wheel.
Those are the words that came to mind as I awoke to the jarring sound of the alarm clock. I rolled over, trying to get my eyes to focus on the clock, forgetting what time I set the alarm for, all the while trying to remember what day of the week it was. The feeling of dread washed over me as I mentally went through the check list for the day. The list felt endless and the pace maddening. All I could manage to come up with was the analogy of a hamster on a wheel, running like crazy but going nowhere.
Can you relate?
We all have our hamster moments, the days when we feel that life is dull and drab and the weeks that seem filled with mundane and meaningless tasks. I have been pondering how to get okay with the ‘less than perfect’ hamster life. How do I equate hamster life with purpose and meaning?
How am I to go forth and make disciples of all nations when I’m up to my ears in laundry? How am I to live the gospel truth when I am busy living out my reality on the recreation fields of life? What is my calling and how can I decipher it amongst the constant and persistent calls of, “Mom, can you do _____?”
I’ve spent the better half of my life and all of my mothering years wrestling with the question of purpose and meaning. I am slowly coming to the realization that my heart needs to make a drastic shift from what it is I want: purpose and meaning, to a shift to what Jesus wants: an unsatiated hunger and thirst after Him.
King David understood this lesson well when he earnestly prayed, “one thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and see him in his temple. {Psalm 27:4}
I am realizing that I was created for the sole purpose of falling head over heels in love with Jesus and to be a conduit of his love!
That’s it. No more. No less. That heart searing truth has become profoundly liberating in my life.
My call is to infuse the mundane with His marvelous love. Loving Him and loving all that He has given me to love. I am purposed to do the ordinary, the insignificant, the repetitive tasks of laundry, dishes, dusting, and homework and count it a blessing to my family. It is when I allow His love to flow through me that I make the mundane meaningful. I am created to go out and show His love to all that I meet at the recreation fields, while volunteering in school, while collecting food for the food drive and when kicking back with my friends on a Saturday night.
So, what’s a girl to do? Go ahead and scrub that toilet, attend that PTA meeting, tackle that mean load of laundry knowing all the while that it is God’s work that you are doing.
He can transform even your mundane into meaningful!
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I can’t help but smile. I am not alone in this experience. Do you know in those Mundane task, God reaches us?
I am glad I read this.
Thanks Jeanette.
http://purposefulandmeaningful.blogspot.com/
Thank you, Ifeoma. Your comments made me smile today.
Awesome job, Jeanie! I think every mother (and father) can relate to the struggle w/ the mundane daily tasks. But……they are all blessings. It means yet another day God allows us to be on this planet w/ the ones we love.
Well put Jeanette. Like you, Mom and I can very well relate to the hamster.
So happy I read this. Finally realized the hamster wheel is meaningful!!! Thanks Jeanette
Thanks Laura. Yes, who knew that God uses even the hamster wheel.
Jeannette,
Knowing you, I can see how your love of Jesus and your mission to make others know that love shines through in everything you do. It is a blessing to know you!
Yes and Amen. Your writing made me to realize and think again how blessed I am. Thank you
Thanks, Mimi.
Fantastic friend!
Eloquently written and beautifully expressed Jeanette…thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. You are an inspiring disciple of Jesus and His light and love continually shines through the things you do, yes, even the mundane. You have been blessed so that you can be a blessing to others and you are! Keep letting your light and love shine.
Well said! I often feel so incredibly challenged to remain centered and focused on what is most important in life. Thank you, Jeanette, for reminding every parent out there how even the most mundane of daily responsibilities brings us closer to God.
So wonderfully put Jeanette. It is so refreshing to see those words from someone else. It does make me feel that I am not alone…Chasing my meaning/purpose in this world.
You are a beautiful soul Jeanette. I look forward to the next post!
Thank you so much,Tara. Feeling frustration and lack of purpose in the mundane moments of life is something we all share. How wonderful it is to know we are not alone.
Thanks for reminding us all to stop complaining and to be grateful for our blessings. You are a blessing
Jeanette,
“Falling head over heals in love” with my Savior puts a sweet taste on my tongue for life…even life filled with mindless tasks and trails of laundry. Falling in love is fun!!! Love propels me further and deeper than any alarm clock or to-do list ever could. Jeanette, you have discovered the sweet spot of life. Living out of being in love with our TRUE LOVE. That is speaking to my heart!!!!
When my husband died 3 years ago suddenly at the age of 48, it rocked my world. Mike was the love of my life and after 25 years of marriage and ministry together I was abruptly alone. Mike had called me his bride until the day that he died. Our love was strong and true and I give God all the credit for bringing us together and binding us together in such a marvelous way.
As the grief crept over me, I found myself no longer a bride but now I was a widow. My “love life” was completely changed and I had to learn how to navigate my “life” without my “love”. Excruciating. Exhausting. Empty.
God continued as my loving Father and watched over me. The Holy Spirit snuggled up to me and began to bring me comfort like never before. And the Jesus I had always known as my Savior and Big Brother initiated a new identity into my heart. Jesus became my Husband and the Lover of my soul. We are the bride of Christ and He is our Holy Husband.
So I know what you mean when you say “falling head over heals in love”. It trumps any human experience of love and brings new love and light into all my relationships.
Last year I was able to put my thoughts into a book called “DREAM…a guide to grieving gracefully” and God has used this book to love on widows, widowers, divorced people, parents who have lost children, people who have lost parents, etc to redefine love on a completely different level than we can experience before such a loss. I hope you will share my website dreamsmithbooks.com with anyone you know who needs help experiencing God’s great love especially after a dramatic loss or divorce.
Jeanette, again, my thanks to you for sharing what God is doing in your heart…It helps us all fall a little more in love with “the Love” of our lives.
Dare to DREAM, Kristi Smith
Thank you for sharing so openly about a deeply painful subject, Kristi. It is comforting to know that God has used your pain and allowed you to transform your grief in a powerful and meaningful way. I will definitely check out your book and pass it along to to those who have experienced loss. I know that they will find comfort within its pages. Thanks again for sharing.
Jeanette,
I am thankful for my sweet sisters in the faith like you and for your words of encouragement. May we continue to see God’s goodness at all times.
Dare to DREAM, Kristi
I read this while out of town (again) on a business trip after getting up at 5 to work and worrying about my work at home. That would be all the many tasks that need doing at home for the family! Talk about a hamster wheel! As always your timing was perfect Jeanette — thanks for a wonderful, inspiring, grounding message. God spoke through you to me today! Bless you!
Jen, Thank you for taking the time to read this in what sounds like a very hectic time for you. Grateful for your sweet comment.
Jeanette…. You are such an inspiration to me, and I imagine to everyone who knows you. You always speak words I need to hear and demonstrate God’s love with your actions. You gave me such a good reminder on what’s important, and why… and it was especially needed this week! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Beautifully written!!!
Thank you, Jen. I am grateful that this post spoke to your heart.
Jeanette,
What a beautiful life you live no matter what is going on around you, mundane or roller coaster. Your love for the Lord shines through every fiber of your being. Your words “Loving Him and loving all that He has given me to love.” clarifies my purpose for each day. Beautifully written beautiful girl.
Jeanette I just realized that God has blessed me greatly by giving me no mundane tasks (no laundry,no cleaning,no cooking)and a wonderful profession where I can bring hope and courage to several people every day.
You are blessed indeed! How wonderful to have a profession where you can be a blessing to those around you.
What a great reminder, Jeanette! You are a great inspiration and have a wonderful way of connecting the usual to the spiritual. At the end of the day, your message is one upon which to meditate. By accepting this truth, there is true peace. Thank you for encouraging all those you encounter!! Can’t wait to read the next post:)
Love this post…. it’s easy to think that our worth is tied up in doing “great things for God”, when all He wants from us is love and obedience…. something I am still learning how to do at the young age of 60! God wants me to be faithful in the “little” things in my life, not just the “big”. Whether it is babysitting my grandchildren, or sitting and talking to a lonely elderly widow. It is being faithful in these moments… Thank you again Jeanette..
Brenda, thank you for your kind words. You are so right, we are called only to be faithful. How wonderful it is that we get to see God’s love and blessing right where we are.
Awesome piece Jeanette, you put me back on track. Some of us become human doings instead of human beings and so right now I inhale a deep breath of Love; knowing that the Christ in me will change everything I have done or will do from mundane to meaningful. On second thought; nothing is mundane but my thought that I am not doing something important (big time ego at work here). Really, who am I to judge and worry about the significance of my thoughts and actions? I need to practice on leaving it up to God to bless the things I’ve done or left undone today.
Happy New Year, thanks for sharing and I look forward to more blogs from you.
Thank you. You are so right, it is our ego, our thought that what we are doing is not important, not significant. I am thankful that God blesses all our offerings.
Jeanette,
Thank you for sharing such wonderful insight into our true purpose. I too have been searching for meaning and know that Jesus is my purpose, but hearing it from other busy moms helps keep it in perspective. Thank you for inspiring us as we also run around the hamster wheel! Thanks and God Bless!
Thank you, Susan.
Mom,
I thought that your blog post was wonderful! Everything that you said had meaning, and it impacted every single person who commented before me. That says a lot. You are a very talented person with a gift in writing and using the right words to relate to many, many people. Even though I know that I am one of the main causes for your “mundane tasks” I still loved your post, and a plethora of other people did too. I love you mommy.
Thank you, Kate. I am honored that God has allowed me to live my life alongside someone as wonderful as you.
That’s so sweet Kate and Jeanette. Witnessing genuine gratitude and appreciation between children and parents is so heart warming!
(( Love Kate’s comment! ))
Jeanette,
Beautifully written! I especially enjoyed your thoughts on how God’s love infuses meaning into the mundane. Sometimes when I’m spinning on that wheel, I think about Mary doing laundry or cleaning Jesus’ room. —– congrats on a well-deserved accomplishment! God Bless!
God really does use the mundane to show His meaning!
Thank you for this reminder to be mindful of every glory filled moment!
Bless you!
Jeanette your post was wonderful! oh how I wish I could have understood this when I was a young mother trying to do it on my own (listening to those around me) instead of listening to Christ…through God’s mercy and grace I have a wonderful family and I’m so blessed!
Blessings on you and your family, Jeanette!!!
Thank you Thank you for this wonderful post
Kris, Thank you for your sweet words of encouragement. Many blessings to you and yours as well.
Jeanette,
Thank you for this sweet post! To often I feel like the mundane tasks of life are like being on a hamster wheel. I don’t always show the love of God through my actions, oh I try, but so often my emotions (tired, grumpy, unhappy) ate what shine through. I need to realize that doing the simple acts of laundry, phone call, visiting people, shopping, Etc. are the very things God has called us to do and we should do them all to the Glory of God and the best of our ability.
Blessings 🙂
Thank you, Beth. I agree, we need to embrace the gift of the mundane moment.
Jeanette,
Your joy always makes me smile, you gladden my heart. How true you are about doing the mundane and at the same time keeping in mind our purpose to fall in love with Jesus.
Blessings and Love
My Beloved Jeanette,
Thank you for your refreshing words. I’m always so preoccupied with knowing what is my calling and purpose when all along I should be more focused on my relationship with Jesus. You are a blessing to me–thank you! Love, Mildred
Beautifully written and wonderfully you, Jeanette! I especially like “It is when I allow His love to flow through me that I make the mundane meaningful.” This also gently reminds me of the saying that “God is love and when you love you are like Him.” I find I can relate to what you’ve said because it’s so hard to feel love at all times and in everything I do. Thanks so much for sharing your blog with me.
One more thing – the last time we saw each other, T, Kate, Maya, Drew, and you were visiting for a couple of nights… What I saw during that time was you exuding love in every way, no matter what you said or did, no matter how mundane it seemed to you, and whether you were aware of it or not. So just by being YOU (woman, wife, mother, friend), you made the mundane meaningful to ME!
Wow, now I’m truly missing our times in prayer group waaay back when!
Dear Jeanette, for as long as I’ve known you I’ve always seen your love for Christ shine through whether it be collecting food for families struggling, getting Christmas gifts for those same families or collecting shoes. In addition, you give all of us the opportunity to participate in these ministries. I think all of us go through the feeling that our life is full of mundane chores. The good news is your blog has opened our eyes to the fact that even in the mundane we can show the love of Christ to others. No words are necessary the actions say it all. You have no idea how many lives you have touched and the many still out there that you will bless. I’m honored every time I get an email from you with an opportunity to serve.
Jeanette, thank you so much for this thought-provoking article. I did not know you had a blog. I shall watch out for more articles from you that will bring me closer to Him. Meanwhile I will hold you in prayer.
God bless you, girl.
Dear Jeanette,
You show that the sacred and the mundane can be one if we so choose! How powerful is that!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Well said, Gloria. Thank you.
Well said and so inspiring! This ties in just right with my 2015 word: joy. I hope to see more blogs from you. xo