Summer had begun. The sun was rising earlier, and my melatonin dropped in harmony with it, making it much easier to wake up. The perfect opportunity to sneak in some quiet prayer time before my three small children woke for the day. My baby would usually wake to feed sometime around sunrise, leaving me a strong half hour of peaceful solitude in the dawn after laying him back down in his crib.
This morning’s respite was what I needed to power through, as I had been feeling all-consumed by the day-in and day-out of making sure three little humans were thriving and surviving.
Feeling ragged by 6 AM?
As any mom of littles knows, it’s not rare for you to wake up, serve all your children breakfast, get them their requested seconds, and start clearing their plates and cleaning up the floor before you’ve had a sip of coffee or a bit of your own breakfast. In the words of Kelsey Gillespy, author of In the Trenches: Finding God Through Parenting Littles, “It’s barely six o’clock and I already feel like a ragged, worked-to-death servant” (39).
She gets me! I think, after reading her words. So I’m not alone when the idea of being a servant is not one which has me singing songs of joy and humility. Yet while this fellow mother relates to me, she also challenges me, calling me on, reminding me that
“Jesus didn’t call us to be comfortable. He never offered an easy, convenient life [. . .] He commanded us to die to ourselves. To be servants [. . .] if you’ve been thinking that parenthood is tough, you’re in good company [. . .] We are doing the greatest work on earth. We are living as Jesus called us to live ” (40–41).
You are not alone
This book was recommended to me by one of my good friends, Sister Magnificat Rose, a Sister of Life, and it came at just the right time—the beginning of summer. So as I spent those sunlit mornings with the Lord, I read one of Gillespy’s short chapters each day. Each four- to five-page chapter reminded me not only that I wasn’t alone, but gave me the encouragement I needed to be a servant.
What I love so much about Gillespy’s writing is how incredibly raw and vulnerable she is. She says the things out loud that I keep quiet. And it is so refreshing. She shares her heart, but she also does so in a way that makes you laugh because you, too, can totally relate! The best part is that she takes an everyday experience, and ever so creatively and honestly relates it to our relationship with God.
Take, for example, the chapter I read out loud to my husband, which was all about Gillespy running through the mental checklist of to-dos before driving to Sunday Mass. “Clean the table. Clean the kids. Dress the kids. Do their hair. Get myself ready. Get out the door [. . .] Ten minutes. We had to accomplish all of that in ten minutes” (161). After a family feat, they were off. She writes, “As we pulled out of the driveway, my husband and I sighed deeply. Just like we do every Sunday” (163). My husband and I do the very same thing every week!
Then later, just as Mass began, her daughter spilled the snack bag, spilling cheerios all over the floor, which her toddler quickly scooped up off the floor to shovel into her mouth; meanwhile, her infant was screaming for milk. After such a hectic start to their well-intentioned morning, she couldn’t help but ask Jesus, “Do you SEE what I go through to bring my kids to Mass?” To which she heard in reply, “I went through some stuff to be here, too . . .” (164).
Food for the soul
Perspectives like these kept me eager to read the next day’s chapter, and with the conclusion of each one, she offers a reflection for her readers to consider throughout the day, and a short prayer to end with. There is so much food for the soul in this book!
If you are feeling in the trenches, this book will help to shift your perspective as you take Jesus’ hand as He lifts you to higher ground. I see you, and I am praying for you!
Susanna Parent is a regular contributor to the BIS blog, speaker and a freelance writer. While a Wisconsin native, she now begins her mornings brewing French press coffee in the home she shares with her husband and children in the Twin Cities. When the sun sets, you’ll find her with friends enjoying a glass of red wine, preferably outside underneath twinkly lights. When not exploring all that the Twin Cities has to offer, she is indulging her wanderlust spirit by brainstorming their family's next new adventure. You can find out more about her here. Read all of Susanna's posts here.
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