Guest Post by Lauren Holmes
My husband and I are looking to move to a new home, so recently we have gone through the process of making repairs on the house to get it in tip top shape for the prospective buyers who come through. It seems as though every time I clean a nook and cranny, I find something else that is dirty or out of order.
Motherhood is often the same. We do a load of laundry, feed the kids, bathe them, and then oops, they throw up all over themselves, their crib, and the floor. After bathing them again, putting on a fresh set of clothes, giving them medicine, and disinfecting the floor and changing out the sheets, we as moms can get pretty tired. Sure, many of us have dads to help us out, but let’s face it, (no one does it quite like mommy, or so we think.)
So often we believe that we have to do it all ourselves. We’re supermom, right? We don’t need any help! We’ll simply throw on our magical red cape, and the entire house will be spotless, and our kids will be perfectly behaved. We all know that it takes much more than this. So why do we still sometimes think that we have to “do it all” or be good at everything?
Maybe we look at our friends’ kids and houses, and wonder how their house is always so clean, or why their two-year-old can talk in sentences when ours is barely saying words?
When we play the comparison game, no one wins. Remember that everyone is different. While some can keep a clean house, (and love doing so,) others may be excellent chefs. And while some are crafty and can sew a tutu and knit a scarf in one night, others might be excellent hostesses.
Instead of trying to be Martha Stewart in the home, Paula Deen in the kitchen, and Heidi Klum on date night, figure out what it is that you’re best at. I didn’t say “good” at; I said “best” at. When you do the things that you excel at, (and it doesn’t have to involve motherhood all the time,) you will thrive and feel good about yourself. God has given us unique gifts, and by trying to excel at someone else’s natural talents, we get frustrated.
In my own life, God has given me the gift of “gab.” My husband has even nick-named me “chit-chat.” I love talking, writing, going to parties, and being social. These are the areas that God has gifted me in, so I need to do these and pursue these gifts to the best of my ability, (instead of running myself ragged doing a million other things that I’m not even good at.)
Focus on what you do well. Once I decided that in addition to writing, I would be a video editor. The only problem was that I wasn’t any good at editing. I spent hours and hours trying to edit, shed tears, had nervous breakdowns, and pouted because my videos weren’t perfect. After about a year of this, it dawned on me – my greatest talent was not editing, so instead of trying to be an editor, why not be the best writer and speaker that I could be?
God has given you unique gifts. Hone in on those and perfect them, because your God-given talents are what will take you far in life! To learn more about spiritual gifts and identify those that you are good at, visit gifttest.org.
Lauren Holmes (aka “Chit-Chat”! :)): This is one Mother who Matters – to two adorable babies (2 year old & 9 month old) & a husband (of 5 years). She is also a College Professor, wife, friend, sister, and Jesus-lover. She loves Zumba, travel, healthy eating, spending time with friends, reading, and taking walks. Her goals in life are to be a mother who is there for her kids, (not a workaholic,) a loving wife whose husband calls her Blessed, and an author, motivational speaker and screenwriter.
For more of her writing and thoughts, visit her at LHolmes79’s Blog, and look out for her first book that will be published by the fall of 2012!
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