My goal at the beginning of this month was to write 25,000 words and complete the draft of my first manuscript before the month’s end.
Is.
My goal IS to write 25,000 words.
I knew that it would be a lofty goal because it meant writing approximately 1000 words a day, but I didn’t plan on my three little children making it nearly impossible to reach my daily goals. I mean, I suppose I could have predicted that.
My children, like all children, are sweet, funny, and adorable, while simultaneously being exhausting, unpredictable, and needy. I haven’t met a mom yet for whom this isn’t true.
I planned my daily writing block at the quietest time of the day – post-bedtime – when I was most likely to have success in reaching my goals. The problem is that apparently no one communicated my personal time request to my children.
And so, night after night, I have faced wake ups and interruptions as I tried to write. Children needing to be rocked, or taken to the bathroom, or snuggled back in bed. Children that just wanted their mommy to make everything better.
And you know what…that’s okay.
Have I experienced setbacks? Yes. Have I lost my train of thought? For sure. Have I been too tired to write anything sensible? Absolutely.
Being a mom of young kids can make pursuing your own dreams nearly impossible. And yet, it is worthwhile to keep pressing forward. Even if it means that I only write one sentence. That’s one sentence more than I had yesterday.
But, and catch this because it’s so important, it is the interruptions that bring the richness to our lives. Don’t miss them. Don’t be so focused on getting back to the work that’s you’re doing, however important it may be, that you miss out on the moments that are most meaningful.
Ten years from now it will not matter whether I finished my manuscript in November or December or July, but the time that I spent cherishing my littles and being present in those moments will make all the difference – for both of us.
As Jesus followers, we are directed to model our lives after him. We can learn so much from him about how to navigate these disruptions to our days.
Just look at the recounts of Jesus’ ministry in the bible. Almost every narrative about his travels with the disciples is an interruption from what he was doing or on his way to do.
Let’s look at a few instances from the book of Mark:
Mark 2 – Jesus was speaking at someone’s home when a group of men interrupted him by lowering their paralyzed friend through the roof.
Mark 4 – Jesus and the disciples are travelling by boat to the other side of the sea when a storm comes up unexpectedly. The passage recounts how Jesus calmed the storm and spoke to their fears.
Mark 5 – Jesus is preaching to the crowds when he is interrupted by a man named Jairus who begs Jesus to come and heal his sick daughter.
Mark 5 – In the same passage, Jesus is interrupted again on his way to Jairus’ house by a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years.
These are just a few examples. The gospels are rife with interruptions to Jesus’ work that have since become the moments the gospel writers believed were worth telling. They are the stories that we are still learning from two thousand years later.
Yes, Jesus’ preaching changed lives, but he didn’t let the pursuit of his mission blind him to the opportunity to show love in and through the disruptions to that mission.
Pursue your dreams passionately, but don’t let the pursuit of your dreams blind you to the beauty and potential to show love in and through your own interruptions.
What are some interruptions that you have faced this week?
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