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How to Spend Time with Jesus in the Chaos

Reading Time: 6 min

Life can be so crazy, even with all of our attempts to prioritize, to cut back. We all come to the realization that like nature, there are ebbs and flows, times of business and times of rest.

The birth of a baby, the start of a new job, the death of family member, chronic sickness, and major projects both at home and work can all throw off the routine and leave us in a state of upheaval.

As a mom, how do we prioritize our relationship with God when we haven’t had a shower in three days? And how do we not sink into frustration and despair when EVERY TIME (cue dramatic sigh), we go to spend some time with our Heavenly Father, our toddler wakes up screaming from his nap (after we just spent 30 minutes getting him to sleep), or our dog starts barking ferociously at the mailman?

Is it even realistic to assume that a life with God is possible when there are so many demands on our attention?

What does it even look like to spend time with God as a busy mom? These are the questions that run through every mom’s head from time to time as we heave a sigh of exhaustion and get up to put out yet another fire.

What would it look like to live a life where our everyday tasks became an act of worship to our King? Where in the still and chaotic ordinary moments we can be present, looking and waiting on God.

How would it feel to take our ordinary moments and let God transform them, allowing us to live our lives with abundant joy?

Is It Important?

Is It Possible?

Is It Ordinary?

Is It Important?We have heard countless times all of the reasons why we should spend time with Jesus. Intellectually we get it, but it can seem so unproductive, there are projects compete, and bathrooms to clean, and to stop and just BE can seem well, a cross between a lazy and an extravagant luxury. God will understand, we tell ourselves, when life calms down, when Jr. isn’t screaming at the top of his lungs, then you will definitely spend quality time with Jesus.

If we are not intentional we can live our lives always responding to the loudest crisis, sacrificing our spiritual health, on the altar of productivity, and the urgent. We will miss out on the most foundational part of life; a life lived in intimate relationship with Jesus.

It says, in 1 Kings, 19:11-13, “Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”

Would you be able to hear God if he came as a gentle whisper?

Being a follower of Jesus, at its core, is all about a love relationship with God. It is about daily surrender, the laying down of your to-do lists, your hopes, and dreams to the one who lavishly loves you.

1 John 4:15-16 it says this, “Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God’s Son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God. We know it so well, we’ve embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God.”

Attempting to follow Jesus, without actually spending time with him, is like trying to live our lives with both hands and feet tied behind our back. When you are tired and worn out, when you are frustrated and depressed, when you are struggling, God calls out to you, his beloved child, saying, “Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life.”(Matt. 11:28)

I read that verse and think of a refuge, a place where all of my burdens, my physical frailties, and my relationship woes, are all laid before God; and he hands me a thick blanket, and encourages me to sink into a place of deep and abiding rest, secure in the knowledge that he has everything under control.

all given over to God, and he hands me a thick

Ephesians 3:14-19 says this, “And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.”

There is an adventure that comes with experiencing the love of the Father. Call out to him, meet him, and let him show you the depth of his love for you. I can truly say that your life will never be the same.

2. Is It Possible?

When you feel that you can’t add another thing to your schedule or start to wonder if life with God is possible for a busy mom; ask yourself these questions:

a. What are your priorities? Rank them from highest to lowest. Follow up the process by asking yourself, “Why?”

b. Why is your life chaotic? Is it a season of change (new baby, new job)? Or is your schedule something you can tweak?

c. Do you have unrealistic expectations for time with Jesus? (ex. I need to spend one hour with God after being up all night with the baby?)

We can get so caught up in moving through life that we don’t stop to periodically ask ourselves why are we doing what we are doing? We need to come to grip with the season of life that we are in, giving ourselves grace, and embrace meeting with God in the limitations of that season.

Susanna Wesley is an encouraging example to mothers everywhere, of a woman who understood the trials of a busy life, but who thoroughly embraced the joys and constraints of her current season of life. A homeschooling mother of eleven children (including her famous sons John and Charles Wesley) she was known for being very serious about her faith.

“One of the most dramatic examples of how busy and crowded the house often was is that as a signal to her children to be quiet, Susanna would sometimes sit down and pull her apron over her head so that she could pray in peace.” Eric Metaxas captured this telling moment, in his book, 7 Women and the Secret of their Greatness.

Life with God is not only possible, but it is necessary (cue screaming kid).

3. IS IT ORDINARY?

How can we embrace the season of life that we are in? By not regulating God to that quiet, special time we title, devotions, but look to include him in the ordinary moments of our day.

Invite him into your day when you wake up. Pray for yourself and others while you are washing the dishes. Embrace the moments of silence by just enjoying His presence while in the shower, or on the way to work. Turn off the podcast and talk, or hang out with God while mowing the lawn.

God is always present with us. Ask God for the grace to be present with Him, to love Him, and to enjoy Him all throughout the day.

Brother Lawrence, a French monk who lived during in the 17th century, is a great example of someone who made the ordinary things extraordinary by doing them unto God.

He was assigned the monastery kitchen, which he did not enjoy, and in the midst of the unglamorous ordinary tasks, he decided to spend time with God, worshipping and praising him.

He said, “We can do little things for God; I turn the cake that is frying on the pan for love of him, and that done, if there is nothing else to call me, I prostrate myself in worship before him, who has given me grace to work; afterwards I rise happier than a king. It is enough for me to pick up but a straw from the ground for the love of God.”

So, join me by inviting God’s presence, and offering the best, worst and in-between moments of our day as an act of worship to him.

What about you? What are your favorite ways to meet with Jesus in your everyday life?

If you enjoyed this post, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow us on Pinterest.

Interested in Exploring this Topic Further?

Check out these titles:

1. Liturgy of the Ordinary – Tish Harrison Warren

2. Death By Suburb – David L. Goetz

bout you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God?

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follo

What is the Most Important Work?

Reading Time: 2 min 26 sec

Welcome to the Most Important Work blog. I am excited to kick off what I hope is a very fruitful friendship.

I started Most Important Work because after spending twelve years as a children’s and youth pastor and becoming a parent myself, I realized that:

Parenting is HARD work

2. Every parent is afraid they are going to blow it

3. We all wonder if we are doing enough

I found after talking to numerous parents that we are all so busy trying to keep our children clothed, fed, and ALIVE that we struggle to find a consistent time to incorporate God in everyday life. If we do find the time, we are at a loss of how to (besides reading the Bible, prayer and memorizing scripture) weave the things of God throughout our day.

I was also tired of children’s curriculum that was so focused on transferring facts about Jesus that they missed the whole “heart” part of a relationship with Jesus.

I believe Catherine Stonehouse and Scottie May say it best in their book, Listening to Children on the Spiritual Journey,

“Often adults have assumed that we could give children their understanding of God by just telling them what God is like… As they are ready, children construct or form their understandings for themselves, with the gracious presence, encouragement, and guidance of God’s Spirit.”

We can’t just fill our children’s heads with facts about God and assume our kids will grow up having a thriving relationship with Jesus.

It is our charge as parents to pass on our active faith to our kids. Meaning, our children come to experience a deeper relationship with God through the power of the Holy Spirit AND by watching US live life.

Stonehouse and May continue by saying, “The lives we (parents) live, how we love and discipline children, the stories we tell, the comments we make, and the lessons we teach are raw materials for God and the children to use as they actively construct their understanding of God and God’s ways.” I want to give my children the best of both worlds; a balance of both experience and knowledge of God.

What would it look like, for your child to “know” from their own experience (not just hearing it from you) that they are uniquely and lavishly loved by God?

That the Creator of the universe wants to be an important part of all the ordinary things that make up your child’s day? If that was at the core of who they were; how would that change how they saw and moved in life? Their very identity?

It would change the trajectory of

your child’s life.

It would chIt ItIt the trajectory of your child’s life.

I have been on a quest, pouring through books, praying, leading simple activities at home and at church, brainstorming, and talking with parents all on a mission to find ways that real parents, with real lives, can intentionally provide simple ways for their children to meet with Jesus at home.

My desire is that Most Important Work would act as a catalyst; providing encouragement, inspiration, resources, and motivation for Moms as we travel together on this parenting journey.

If you want to know how to get started in living a deep life with God; grab our Deeper Life Beginners Guide (below). And join our community of moms who are hungry for more Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their families.

What about you? What topic are you most interested in hearing more about on this blog? We would love to hear from you!

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10 Simple Ways to Invite God Into Your Child’s Day

Reading Time: 4 min 22 sec

I don’t know about you but I want my children to grow up in an environment where they instinctively invite God into every aspect of their day. I want to give them a leg up in this thing called…life.

I want to do the heavy lifting so my kids can

reap the benefits.

Don’t we all want that for our kids? In order to foster such a God-centered environment, we have to be intentional as parents.

Intentionality, an intimidating word that can evoke the same fear as the word “budget”. The word that screams, “This parenting gig is just too overwhelming, I can’t add or even think about one more thing. We are failing miserably. We aren’t enough. They are going to need therapy.”

Before we all run screaming from the room, take a deep breath, and realize that it while it does take some effort, we have the benefit of working in tandem with the Holy Spirit.

Here is a quick overview of ten ways that you can encourage a God-centered environment at home. These tips are deceptively simple and yet when practiced consistently (not all at once) the impact can be HUGE!

Start the Day with Prayer
Memorize a Passage of Scripture
Light a Candle
Read a story
Take a walk
Pray over booboos
Pray for the needs of others
The Power of Silence
Reflect back over the day
Pray blessing over your child

Each activity is only 2-15 minutes long. *BTW, all of these activities have the perk of being effective in your life as well.

Here are 10 very simple ways to invite God into Your Child’s Day

Start the day with a Quick Prayer inviting God into your child’s day.

Before the morning chaos starts, grab thirty seconds and your ragtag brood and invite God into your day. It makes such a difference! It makes all the sibling fights, the race against the clock, the spilled syrup and dog vomit all over the ground so… much..easier (I said easier not great).

Take Time to work on Memorizing a passage of Scripture

Write down a short passage of scripture to practice memorizing each day for a couple of minutes. You can also turn your verses into songs with or without hand motions (not that I know from personal experience or anything).

Light a Candle to remind your child that God is present with us all day.

Something about that flickering flame is fascinating to young and old alike. It helps remind us to slow down and remember that we are not alone, that the God of the universe is present today with us.

Read a Story or section from your child’s Bible. Discuss.

When you get to the end of the story, don’t be quick to fill the silence, with a clarification. Allow your child to sit in silence whether for 5 seconds or a minute. The Holy Spirit is at work and your child will internalize exactly as much or as little as they are ready for. You might be surprised by their insights.

5. Take a Walk outside. Stop and look at whatever draws their attention.

Yes, you might be staring at a dead cicada for fifteen minutes, but take off the productive hat (and put your cell phone in your back pocket) and give them the gift your undivided attention. Join them in marveling at God’s creation. Enjoy the slower pace.

Pray over boo-boos every..single..time.

I don’t know about you but my children, big and small, get hurt like a thousand times a day. From scraped knees to hurt pinkies, stopping to pray for healing is such an easy way to include God in the ordinary parts of our day. It is amazing to see how such a simple five-second prayer brings comfort, peace, and calm to my children.

It really enforces the truth that God cares about every part of our lives even the small splinters in our thumbs.

It is beautiful to see the kids instinctively gather together and pray over each other when they get hurt (they get a lot of practice throughout the day).

Take Five minutes and as a Family Pray for the needs of 1-2 other people.

This is a great activity because it can literally be done anywhere at any time (no craft supplies needed, Hurray!). You could focus on using this tool ongoing or for a season as it really fosters a heart of service and love towards others.

Spend 2 minutes of Silence in the car. Just being with Jesus. No demands.

WORD of Warning: This.. can.. be.. so.. powerful.

However, you can’t just shout, “Kids, we are going to be silent for the next two minutes. You WILL SPEND this time with Jesus!” It doesn’t work, trust me.

I would suggest starting off with a quick explanation, “Kids we are going to spend some time just hanging out with Jesus in silence, enjoying his presence.”

And a quick two sentence prayer, “God we love you, and we love spending time with you. Be with us during this time.”

I would encourage you to set realistic expectations for this activity. If your children have never practiced silence before don’t feel frustrated when little Johnny makes faces at his sister, and weird sounds start erupting from the back seat (it will happen). This can be a meaningful activity but as with anything it takes practices. Stick with it!

And to end say something really profound like, “Thank you, God. Amen.”

9. Bedtime- Spend 5 minutes looking back over your day. Ask God to highlight anything that you need to reflect on.

For a season, we ended every day by praying and asking God to lead us back over our day, both the happy and the sad, and highlight anything we needed to pay attention to.

I would ask questions like, “What brought you joy today? What made you sad today?” paying attention to their emotions, and giving those feelings and that situation over to God. We would then pray for God’s blessing over tomorrow.

Allowing your child space to reflect over their day without jumping in with suggestions is necessary for this practice. Some of the most special times that I have had with my child have been during this bedtime prayer.

Finish the Day by Praying a Blessing over your Child.

Keep it simple. My personal preference is to pray using words that my child understands with zero explanation required.

Though my blessing seems to vary at times the main heart of it stays the same. I pray that God would watch over my children all of the days of their lives, that their heart would be soft to things of God, and that their ears would hear his voice.

It has been a beautiful, simple part of our everyday life. My kids now won’t go to sleep without “praying the prayer”.

Grab your FREE Deeper Life Beginners Guide and join our community of moms who are hungry for more of Jesus in their lives and in the lives of their children.

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follow Most Important Work on Pinterest. about you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God?

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forget to follo

How To Teach Your Preschooler at Home

Reading Time: 5 min 25 sec

It’s that time of year, when massive bins of pencils, crayons, and markers start appearing when swim paraphernalia is on massive discount, and Starbucks is threatening the upcoming arrival of their pumpkin lattes, that you know…. school… is…. coming!

You start to panic, because though you have made the scary decision to homeschool, and you have NO IDEA what you are doing! Your adorable three-year-old is counting on you to make sure that she gets into the college of her dreams and you CAN’T MESS THIS UP!

I was at the same place you are and now after homeschooling two children through preschool myself, I promise you, YOU CAN DO IT!

Everything a child learns in preschool can be learned through living life with you at home. So how do you do it?

Stare at Bugs
Build Forts
Explore Hidden Worlds
Listen to Fairy Tales
Play Hopscotch
Splash in Puddles
Go on Adventures
Dance Parties
Get Messy
Help Mommy

Seriously, kids are naturally curious. Who hasn’t sat beside a three or four-year-old without experiencing the endless assault of questions about everything from ducks to socks to spaghetti? As a homeschooling mom of a preschooler, all you have to do is to continue to encourage their love of learning at home!

So how do you do that? How to do you foster an environment of lifelong learning?

1. Stare at Bugs-Be Curious!

Kids are natural observers. They want to know how everything works. Be intentional about slowing down and answering their questions. Of course, you can’t stop and answer their endless questions, every… single… time, however, you can be intentional about encouraging their love of learning. It’s even better if you don’t know the answer to some super random question because then you and your child can go to the library and find a book on that topic.

“I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” Albert Einstein

2. Build Forts-Use Your Imagination!

We have all this misconception that in order to learn we need to be sitting at a table doing busy work. There is study after study that says that play is not only important but crucial to the overall development of your child.

Through play, your child develops a myriad of skills not the least of which is imagination, that equips them to understand how the world works. So let them pile up the couch cushions and sail for unchartered waters.

“Play is the highest form of research.” Albert Einstein

3. Explore Hidden Worlds-Read A Lot!

Can you imagine a better childhood memory than snuggled up to your mom, covered in a blanket, listening to the stories of faraway places? The world is at your child’s fingertips and they come to understand that anything they want to know about can be found in the pages of a book. Through reading your child develops their vocabulary, critical thinking, imagination, and language skills.

Suggestion: Ella Bella Ballerina or Katie Series by James Mayhew

“Children are made readers in the laps of their parents.”-Emilie Buchwald

Listen to Fairy Tales

Avoid sibling squabbles and the endless “are we there yet?” questions by pulling out an audiobook as an alternative to the iPad for those days of errands or long road trips. Audiobooks not only save your voice (woohoo!) and allow you to read longer chapter books but they also develop imagination, listening, creativity and vocabulary skills.

Suggestion: Start with short books, such as Madeline and move on to exploring longer chapter books like the Paddington Bear series.

“There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of books is the best of all.” Jacqueline Kennedy

5. Play Hopscotch-All about Games

Wow, the power of games cannot be underestimated! At one point, I really wanted to develop my child’s math skills. I bought a couple of math board games and we have had so much fun playing together as a family. Their math skills improved immeasurably and now math is one of their favorite subjects.

What I love about using games is not only is it FUN but it serves as a mental hook; where later when that subject is studied more in depth, they have amazing memories to connect with the new information.

We now use games for every subject in homeschooling.

Suggestion: Curious George Matching Game, Candy Land, and Magnetic Tiles.

“If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn.” Ignacio Estrada

6. Splash in Puddles- Get Outside

Do you remember how fun it was to walk in the rain and splash in every big puddle? I love reading about how nature preschools spend the morning outdoors in all types of weather (except dangerous).

Playing outside in nature helps children be active, develop their imaginations, and their confidence, learn about their planet, and respect living things.

Suggestion: Visit parks, hike trails, pull up weeds, put on raincoats, and splash in streams!

“A child, more than anyone else, is a spontaneous observer of nature” -Maria Montessori

7. Go on Adventures- Field Trips

It seems like the general assumption is that museums and four-year old’s do not go together.

I beg to differ. It’s how you do it and knowing your child’s (and your own) limits. With my preschool children, I would aim for a thirty-minute walk around the art museum. You can either cover the entire museum or like we did spend your time in one or two rooms, just find what works for your family.

Exposing kids to a wide variety of experiences helps to foster a love of art, literature, music, science etc. from a young age.

When they sit down to learn about math or art later in life, they come with an expectation of enjoyment, as they attach the wonderful memories they had as a young child exploring something new.

Suggestion: Check out the events available at children’s museums, art and history museums, nature centers, zoos, dairy farms, libraries, ballet, and symphonies.

“Kid’s don’t need more toys -they need more adventures!” -Sarah Mueller

Dance Parties-Listen to the Beat

By exploring a wide variety of music, your child will develop their creativity, language, and motor skills.

Your child will be exposed to pop culture throughout their lives, so be intentional about developing their palate for music. You might not necessarily listen to jazz, country or the blues, but your child sure will enjoy dancing to the different rhythms!

There are several ways to listen to a variety of music at home, you just have to find out what works best for your family. One idea is that you could choose to listen to a different style of music every week or every month.

Suggestion: One of our favorites is the Beethoven’s Wig and the Classical Kids audio series.

“Music can change the world.” Beethoven

9. Get Messy- Experience Art!

It is amazing what kids can create when you provide them with markers, crayons, colored pencils, and finger paint and let them go crazy. Not only are children developing their creativity, but also their fine motor skills.

If you don’t want to deal with the mess have your children paint while sitting on the back porch. Or I would have them pick up something on our nature walk (pinecone, rock, leaf) and bring it back to draw.

Suggestion: Check out local museums for art programs. These programs are specifically designed for preschoolers and most often are free!

“Every child is an artist” -Picasso

Help Mommy-Chores

Last but not least, teach your child to help you with the chores around the house. Yes, this is easier said than done but learning to clean up after themselves is just as important of a life skill as phonics.

As your child participates in chores, it helps them to develop responsibility, a strong work ethic and gives them a sense of accomplishment. It also lets them know that they are an important part of your family.

Start by teaching them how to do small tasks, such as pick up their toys, put away the silverware, fold socks, etc.

Suggestion: To avoid your child feeling overwhelmed (at this age), stay in the room and offer to help them put away their toys.

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard” Tim Notke

What about you? What are your favorite ways to foster a love of learning at home?

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment and don’t forget to follow us on Pinterest. about you? What are your favorite ways to increase your child’s awareness of God?

If you try any of these activities, let us know! Leave a comment, and don’t forge