“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”
Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV
Over the last few years, I’ve spent hours hiding in the bathroom.
Hiding from the constant demands of motherhood.
Hiding from the never-ending laundry, the bills that need paying, the invitations that need answering, the texts, emails, phone calls, and follow-ups that never seem to end.
I was hiding from a life I orchestrated and thought I wanted. My life checked all the right boxes. My heart should have overflowed with joy. Instead, I felt overwhelmed and exhausted, my soul weary. I felt suffocated and needed some breathing room.
Maybe you've felt this way.
You land your "dream job," but the early mornings and long nights are wrecking your physical and mental health.
You’re fortunate to have a good group of friends, a solid church community, and extended family; you love gathering and getting together. But, instead of always saying yes, you wish you could just find rest for your weary soul.
You’ve joined the PTO, agreed to teach the Bible study, joined the non-profit board, signed up to take the meal to the shut-ins, and volunteered to host the team banquet. All while keeping up with your health, housework, marriage, and children.
No wonder we are exhausted, our schedules are packed, and most have said “yes” to good, godly things. Living at a breakneck speed, with calendars overflowing with commitments, and stretching ourselves thin isn’t what the Lord desires for His children.
Yet, we fill our calendars at the expense of empty hearts. We spend our days surrounded by people, only to fall asleep feeling lonely. We post perfectly poised snapshots, longing to validate our need to feel seen, worthy, and loved.
I know how easy it is to be distracted by what the world says will make you happy, only to be left longing for more. This world offers empty promises, leaving us constantly looking to the next thing in hopes of finding lasting satisfaction. God didn't create this temporal world to be our only dwelling place or to satisfy us fully. We were made for eternity; lasting contentment can only be found in an everlasting God.
The teacher's words in Ecclesiastes 3:11 offer comfort. We are eternal beings, so trying to fill our lives with the temporary over the temporal will always leave us craving more. The hole in our hearts, our desire for significance, acceptance, and love, can only be filled by Jesus.
When we shift our perspective from earthly to eternal, we release ourselves from the weight of striving, hustling, and people-pleasing. What freedom in knowing that we don’t have to do all the things, be all the places, and be everything to everyone!
Living in light of eternity guides us to invest our time and energy in the areas that have lasting significance. We can let go of some of the “good things,” instead choosing the best things, those of which belong to the Lord!
We don’t have to hide in bathrooms, tuck away in our rooms, or take a break from life in order to get some breathing room. Instead let’s embrace living with an eternal perspective so that we can experience more peaceful, purposeful, and plentiful lives today.
Your Fellow Able Mom,
Laura
Heavenly Father, help me to choose the eternal things over the temporary. When I start to feel overwhelmed, when I sense the urge to hide or zone out from life, help me to keep an eternal perspective. Amen.
If someone were to take a peek into where you spend your resources, your time and money, would they say you prioritize the eternal over the earthly things?
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