About Joy

Joy is the wife to a missionary pilot and they, along with their five kids, live in Indonesia. Joy is a proud wife, blessed mommy, Diet Coke fanatic, runner, homeschooler, reader, thinker, home-maker, lover of nature, and most of all, an undeserving recipient of amazing grace, and grateful daughter of God. Joy's heart is to encourage women to revel in their job as mommy and wife, and to see it as good and needed work. She shares her heart and life of being a mom with readers at her site, Grace Full Mama.

The Best Way to Balance a Busy Life

September 18, 2012 By Joy

Balancing on the balance beam has never been easy for me. As I get older, my sense of balance grows even worse. It doesn’t take much… a simple swing on a swing, a car ride on a particularly curvy road, and I am sick and dizzy.

The same is true in my life. It doesn’t take much to upset the balance of my days. Saying yes to too many good things, not leaving time to just be, as a person or as a family, and living in a generally busy state definitely disturbs my balance.

As I have looked around to remedy this unbalanced feeling, which leads to an unbalanced life, one thing that has helped is to center my life and my activities.

It is simple, really, yet has so much power to change the course of the day.

I simply ask this question: Lord, what is it YOU have for me to do today?

Of course, there is the grocery shopping, the meals to make, the laundry to do, but, what is it You want me to do today? By asking those words and reading His Word, it allows Him to direct my days, my moments, my meetings, yes, even my laundry.

As I look around, I sure see a lot of busy. Busy moms rushing from here to there, busy moms stressing over things, busy moms saying yes to way too many things. We say yes because it is the norm and we don’t know how to choose something different. And while it is all “good” things, I sometimes wonder if we have added so much more to our plates than what we have actually been given.

What if, instead of being busy, saying yes to everything that comes our way {and feeling guilty if we don’t}, we said yes to only the things that we feel passionate about? What if we only said yes to the ones we feel the Lord has clearly put on our hearts, and confidently said no to the rest? What if we truly sought the Lord and His direction for the plans we make for our day, weeks, months, years, and lives?

Do you feel overwhelmed when you think of all the things you have to do today?

Are you stressed about all that you have to accomplish?

Then, I would venture to guess that there are some things that are on your plate that were never meant to be there.

So I challenge you {and myself} to get alone for a few minutes and pray about your schedule. Look at everything that is on your plate. Is there something you can let go of for now?

Then ask Him today, what is it You want me to do today?

Blessings, Joy
Gracefull Mama

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This post is part of the Finding Balance series

12 Comments | Filed Under: Following God Tagged With: finding balance

Drawing From The Eternal Spring

August 8, 2012 By Joy

And let me not lay my pipe too short of the fountain, never touching the eternal spring, never drawing down water from above. Valley of Vision

I am the Vine you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:5

The Source for our lives will make all the difference in how our lives are lived day to day. It's true, we can succeed and even do well for days, weeks, even years on our own muster. But to truly be successful? To keep on enduring without burning out? To keep on loving when there is not love left to give? That takes drawing eternal water from the Eternal Source. I mentioned that I wanted to make this a summer of one thing. And this is why.

As mamas we don't want to give our children a cheap imitation of Christ's love, we want to give them the real thing. We want them to see Jesus in and through us each and every day. We can only do this when we spend time with Him, allow Him to love on us, allow Him to heal our hurts, forgive our sins. We need to drink from that beautiful Living Water {His Word}, drink in His grace, His love, His light, in order that we may continue to serve and love our families.

"Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" Psalm 46:10

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Yes, we are weary. There is no time in the day. There is no quiet. There is no peace.

Yet, have your really tried to carve out a little space just for you and Him? Or is it easier to remain busy than to go before the Father? Are you worried about how you might look before Him? Still thinking about yesterday when you yelled at your daughter, or how you spent the money on something other than what you should have? Or are you embarrassed that you frittered away precious time on the Internet?

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 1 Corinthians 12:9

You don't need to clean up to go to Him. He knows your weaknesses, your struggles, your failings. He knows you. And He wants to spend time with you. He wants you to ask Him for help, to rely on Him for your every need throughout the day. He adores you, and is proud of you. Yes, you.

"Do you feel the need for more grace to love your children and see the gospel in your daily life with them? Then rest in His arms and admit your brokenness." Give them Grace

So, today, I encourage you to fall into His loving embrace. Spend time poring over His Word and let it seep into your heart and mind. Enjoy the fellowship. Enjoy the grace. And then, when you are filled up, share it with your kids.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! 1 John 3:1

Let's draw from the Eternal Spring together.

Blessings,

Joy

3 Comments | Filed Under: Following God

The Summer of One Thing

July 3, 2012 By Joy

Summer has begun!! I look forward to a blessed break all the year long! Where I live in the tropics, it is summer every day of the year, but the respite from a full school schedule is as welcome as a cool breeze {which almost never comes}. There is so much to pack into one summer. Even in the midst of a busy life, this summer I want to cultivate one thing.

This:

Intimacy with the Lord. Time spent in His Presence. Taking all the minutes of my day and turning them towards focusing on His Word and using the Word to worship Him.

I want to be a lover of God and His Word. A woman who finds moments all day long to steal away into His Presence. A woman that speaks His glory throughout my day. A woman that glows with the light of His presence.

My family will greatly benefit as I choose to live my life steeped in His Word and focusing on worship and prayer, the overflow flows out on them!

How do I plan to pursue this?

By choosing to focus my thoughts on His Word as I go throughout my busy day. Every moment has the possibility of being a moment spent worshiping Him. A.W. Tozer describes it as, ” inwardly gazing upon God…a directing the heart’s attention to Jesus. It is lifting the mind to ‘behold the Lamb of God’ and never ceasing that beholding for the rest of our lives.”

“It is being in my ordinary, busy life with a sense of ease, gratitude, appreciation, peace, and prayer. It is the robin sitting peacefully on her nest, perched on a branch above a thundering waterfall.“-Linda Dillow, Satisfy My Thirsty Soul

“The time of business does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were on my knees at the blessed sacrament.” -Brother Lawrence, Practicing the Presence of God

As a mama, I am not likely to find a whole lot of time in my day that are completely still, BUT I can choose to be still before the Lord in the midst of the mess, the crazy, and the chaos. I can choose to be that mama bird sitting quietly in my nest in the midst of that rushing waterfall.

And that is what I plan to do, my one thing.

I want to challenge you to join me!! Just think about how our home, lives, friendships, families could be transformed as we join together and become women of ONE THING!!

I want to hear from you in the comments if you are in…..let’s do this together!

“One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek; That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.” Psalm 27:4

35 Comments | Filed Under: Following God

Goodbye School, Hello Summer!

May 15, 2012 By Joy

It is just about that time, friends! School is almost over and the summer is ready to begin! What better way to make the transition than with a fun party?! Yet, we are all busy moms and there isn’t a lot of time or energy to put into planning something special. If you are anything like me, I have the best of intentions, but I often get overwhelmed by the planning and organizing of a fun memory.

So, here is my simple, no-guilt list of ideas that are easy and fun. They are intentionally low-stress, so you can enjoy your family and friends!

1. A S’mores Party-Simply start a fire, bring out the fixins, and let everyone sit around and chat!

Source: myrecipes.com via Joy on Pinterest

2. An Outdoor Tea- Make some scones, cut up some fruit, pour the lemonade, and sit out and enjoy the nice weather!

3. An Ice Cream Social-invite friends, have everyone bring their favorite topping, and you provide the ice cream and cones!

Source: livinglocurto.com via Joy on Pinterest

4. Family Pizza Party- Invite families over and ask each one to bring their favorite pizza. Make a big salad, chill some drinks, set up some tables outside and you are ready to go!

Making a memory shouldn’t be something that you or your kids look back on with stress or regret. So, let the expectations go, invite some friends over, and enjoy yourself! I dare you!!

Now, I want to hear your best ideas for a low stress way to make a summer memory!