The Burden of Balance
'POWERFUL TIPS' Book News:
I've just heard from my publisher and the book is now back from line editing and will soon be ready to be sent to the printers!
Other Thoughts:
I just finished writing an article for Meridian Magazine, entitled The Burden of Balance. In writing this piece, I thought of the times of anguish I have felt when I realized I'd traded sweet time with my children in lieu of over-the-top prep for a seminary class I was teaching the next morning.
I've since learned to balance my time a bit better with my family, seminary responsibilities, and all the other endeavors I have going currently (although, of course, I'm still learning in all this). But my heart does anguish in those lost moments, when I all too often said, "Not now, honey. Mommy can't play. I've got to prep this seminary lesson."
And so I turned today to page 2 of TEACHING THE GOSPEL: A HANDBOOK FOR CES TEACHERS AND LEADERS. It's a tidy little booklet (well, not too little...it sports about an 8 1/2x11 inch size). I mused over the page entitled "Religious Education." On this page, discussion ensues about the difference of secular education and religious education, the purposes and approaches.
And my heart noted the phrase at the bottom of the first column on the left: "The worth of a soul".
THIS is why we teach the gospel to each other at church, and at home. It is because souls matter. And this is precisely why it is essential we conquer balance issues as we go through life. Never must we lose sight that while we are carrying out responsibilities, we also must remember that people matter most.
And so for all the times my children heard that tired phrase, "Not now, honey. Mommy is busy," I am so sorry. I've apologized to them for the abundance of those times, spent in church duties and otherwise, and I've shared that I'd forgotten one of the most important parts of the gospel: that our relationships are eternal.
The hand that squeezes mine today in its tiny, sweet plumpness, will one day be big and strong - and I hope will still desire to cling to my future old and frail hand.
If I push away people who matter most, simply because I'm fixated on a responsibility of some sort, I've then truly forgotten the heart of religious education in the first place...edifying those God has placed in my life, starting first and foremost with my own family.
I pray I've learned the lesson.
I've just heard from my publisher and the book is now back from line editing and will soon be ready to be sent to the printers!
Other Thoughts:
I just finished writing an article for Meridian Magazine, entitled The Burden of Balance. In writing this piece, I thought of the times of anguish I have felt when I realized I'd traded sweet time with my children in lieu of over-the-top prep for a seminary class I was teaching the next morning.
I've since learned to balance my time a bit better with my family, seminary responsibilities, and all the other endeavors I have going currently (although, of course, I'm still learning in all this). But my heart does anguish in those lost moments, when I all too often said, "Not now, honey. Mommy can't play. I've got to prep this seminary lesson."
And so I turned today to page 2 of TEACHING THE GOSPEL: A HANDBOOK FOR CES TEACHERS AND LEADERS. It's a tidy little booklet (well, not too little...it sports about an 8 1/2x11 inch size). I mused over the page entitled "Religious Education." On this page, discussion ensues about the difference of secular education and religious education, the purposes and approaches.
And my heart noted the phrase at the bottom of the first column on the left: "The worth of a soul".
THIS is why we teach the gospel to each other at church, and at home. It is because souls matter. And this is precisely why it is essential we conquer balance issues as we go through life. Never must we lose sight that while we are carrying out responsibilities, we also must remember that people matter most.
And so for all the times my children heard that tired phrase, "Not now, honey. Mommy is busy," I am so sorry. I've apologized to them for the abundance of those times, spent in church duties and otherwise, and I've shared that I'd forgotten one of the most important parts of the gospel: that our relationships are eternal.
The hand that squeezes mine today in its tiny, sweet plumpness, will one day be big and strong - and I hope will still desire to cling to my future old and frail hand.
If I push away people who matter most, simply because I'm fixated on a responsibility of some sort, I've then truly forgotten the heart of religious education in the first place...edifying those God has placed in my life, starting first and foremost with my own family.
I pray I've learned the lesson.
posted by C.S. BEZAS at 2:22 PM
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