Spring is here! I can feel the sun’s rays blazing through our office window. Although I’m full on ready for my spring life to begin, I’m stuck indoors waiting for our governor to announce that the COVID-19 crisis has ended. Until then, outside is officially canceled. Ugh.
I won’t complain, because although I’ve spend the last month indoors - working from home in my fur house shoes (fashion is a must), I’ve gotten so much accomplished, professionally and personally - which I had major concerns about when this whole social distancing situation came about.

I’ve always been a person who felt a sense of pride in getting things accomplished and in dreaming up ideas and watching them come to fruition. Some may not understand, but to me, it was a badge of honor.

The problem is that I had never stopped to consider the need to find balance. As a single woman, I would run full force in one direction, giving so much of my time to one area of life, and leave other areas of my life to collect dust and cobwebs.

While this has probably been an issue for me for forever, nothing brought this problem into focus like marriage did. When I moved to OHIO, I gained a very handsome husband, amazing new in-laws and I started a shiny, new and challenging job. My cup runneth over, but there were still many areas I would need to work on in order to feel “full”. For instance, my husband and I needed a church home, and couples to hang out with, social organizations to join, and I personally needed to take time to find local girlfriends, you know, my clique, to hang out with.

I thought these void areas would be filled in quickly, after all, my outgoing, extraverted personality would have no trouble landing, planting and surrounding myself in a space where I could flourish.

However, it didn’t quite happen that way. I quickly found that my new life didn’t lend as much time as I had in the past. My work life balance turned upside down and I must admit, there were times I found my world spinning out of control. My long days at work trying to “create a name for myself” in the office, left me with just enough time to make it home when the sun was going down to my husband, who was always gracious enough to pick up any slack with kindness and a smile.

I realized, after a year, I hadn’t left any room for me and my priorities had somehow become secondary. I hadn’t found any hobbies, I didn’t have time to go to the gym, my social circle had not expanded, my prayer life and the time I spent with God was suffering and the guilt I felt for not being at home earlier and longer was mounting.

My pastor preached a sermon one Sunday about working and living within the time frame that we have been given. He related it to our time here on Earth, serving God. He stated that we have to be good stewards of the time we have been given. We have 8-hours in our work day- give it everything you’ve got, while your on the clock. Don’t waste time, utilize every minute, don’t get distracted, and don’t piddle, but when when it ends, clock out. That sermon ministered to me on so many levels.

In January, I committed to the idea of finding balance. To be honest, thinking about it made me feel anxious. In my attempt to find a starting point, I turned to God for direction. He reminded me that healthy balance meant seeking Him first, and making my home life a priority. He also reminded me that part of staying balanced was making sure the people around me held me accountable.

I started by asking my circle (my friends back home and in Georgia) to call me to make sure I was leaving work on time. I must admit, breaking this habit was hard. The fear of letting the ball drop or falling behind is something I’m still getting use to, but I tell you, my friends held me to the fire and they faithfully called me every day to make sure I was heading out the door lol. I packed my gym bag every morning so that I could work out for 30 minutes after work. My husband, who is also a workaholic, and I committed to eating dinner together every night and to finding a new hobby that we both enjoyed together. We found the time to join a honeymooners group in our church as well as another ministry. In addition, I made a commitment to not work on the weekends, unless it was an emergency. It was amazing how much time was freed up to live!

The truth is slowly becoming clearer, I am a better Lyndsey and a happier and more helpful wife when I make and take the time for me.

I was a little uneasy when I learned that I would be working from home for a month and a half. I was nervous that I would slip back into my old routine of being glued to my computer, but I haven’t. I’ve gotten up early, prayed and read my Bible, given a very hard 8 hours of my day to work, made time for William every day, exercised, cooked dinner (most days), cleaned (some days) and I’ve even found time to listen to an audio book, talk on the phone to my friends and to start blogging during spring break.

I’ll be honest, sometimes it feels like I haven’t mastered a thing LOL...but I’m working towards my goal, asking God to give me the grace to be the Proverbs 31 woman he called me to be.

“To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted;”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 NKJV
https://www.bible.com/114/ecc.3.1-2.nkjv

Happy balancing,

THE ELLE SCOOP

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