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Let's Go To The Circus: The Juggler

The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
1 John 2:17

 I once heard a juggler tell his audience that anyone can juggle. “If you can juggle three objects, you can learn to juggle ten.” He said the same principle applied no matter how many objects you have. 
The problem is that I have a hard time keeping three objects in the air at one time. Juggling is just not my thing. However, I do juggle my twenty-four hours each day. Time management is a juggling act.
Think back to our ancestors. These pioneers faced many hardships. We certainly wouldn’t want to go back to the backbreaking responsibilities they endured. Washing clothes in a black pot and scrubbing on a rub board is not my idea of the ideal life.
Though most of their tasks were physically hard, they had fewer to juggle. They knew when the cows had to be milked, the chickens fed, the bread baked and the canning done. The pioneer woman knew her schedule and it rarely changed.
Today’s women have so many more choices. We can fill our day with a variety of activities including housework, carpooling, volunteering, shopping, and recreation. We must juggle our time and decide our priorities.
Granted many of our choices are mandatory. The children must be fed and clothed. Groceries must be bought. The wash still has to be done. The problem arises when we become frustrated with our busyness. 
“Do I volunteer for the clothes drive at my child’s school? The local food bank needs me to pack food boxes. Each of my three children wants me to be his homeroom mother. Our elderly neighbor fell and broke her hip. How should I help? My husband has an important meeting out of town. He wants me to go, but it is during tryouts for my daughter’s drill team. Help! What do I do???” Juggling must take place.
On top of the many every day choices, many of you are making choices concerning elderly parents. “What do I do with my ninety-five year old dad? Should he come to live with us? Should we put him in a nursing facility? Help! What do I do?” More juggling!
There is a solution to your frustration. Let God be your time manager. Turn to Him in prayer and tell Him your problems. Spend time with Him. I can testify from experience that you will not only get help in juggling your life, but you will receive the peace that Jesus promised us when he left. 
You can be a master juggler with many plates passing through your hands. Remember to depend on God to direct your path. “ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you” ( Psalm 32:8). I would like to close the week by giving you a blessing from God’s Word.
May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way ( Thessalonians 2:16).
Janice Yandell

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