Followers may have noticed, I have mainly been “re-blogging” on this site. I’ve really wanted to stop trying to maintain two blogs, but each really stands on it’s own. Or does it?
I’ve tried to shut this one down in the past and was encouraged to keep it going. It doesn’t take much to encourage me!
So what has been happening to keep me from blogging? I’m sort of keeping my family and friends updated on our Travel Blog and somewhat giving a glimpse of our lives in our FaceBook Travel Adventure Page. But this blog is where I want to be free to share what is happening through my eyes and in my voice. Although if you ask my husband, he will tell you I write the other blog (but I do it from how WE see life) and update our FaceBook page….but I do try to do it in a way that would be “our” voice.
So what is going on today? I’m struggling. And today, I asked myself, “How do I find a happy ‘medium’ in life?” Is that the right word? I had to look it up and there are SO many ways that word can be used in the English language. So here is the definition I am setting on:
Something, such as an intermediate course of action, that occupies a position or represents a condition midway between extremes.
And that is where I am! My extremes? Being a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend. How do I balance these roles I have in life?
First, I have to look at God’s Word, as with anything. And with that, I look at why I placed my role as wife first:
“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined (cleave) to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
And then what about being a daughter, which roles over into being a mother:
“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right” (Ephesians 6:1).
“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12).
So as I looked around for further help, I found this wonderful site that perhaps has my answer! So while this is not my definitive answer, it is suiting me for now:
With these three aspects of Genesis 2:24 in mind, there are also the scriptural admonitions to honor one’s parents. This includes treating them with a respectful attitude (Proverbs 30:11,17), obeying them when their commands are in keeping with God’s laws (“in the Lord” Ephesians 6:1), and taking care of them as they get older (Mark 7:10-12; 1 Timothy 5:4-8).
The line between these two commands is drawn where one is being asked to comply with one principle in such a way that it will violate the other principle or command. When the meddling of a parent violates the “leaving” because it is treating the parent-child relationship as primary (demanding obedience, dependence, or emotional oneness over the desires of, dependence upon, or oneness with the spouse), it should be respectfully rejected and the spouse’s desires honored. However, when there are genuine needs of an aging parent (either physical or emotional, assuming the emotional “need” does not supersede the “leaving” principle), that need is to be met, even if one’s spouse does not “like” the parent-in-law. Biblical love toward the aging parent is given based on choosing to do the loving thing, even when one does not feel like doing it.
My next post will look at balancing life. I’ll never forget asking my wise nephew at his graduation from a Christian College, “What is the greatest thing you have learned these past years from this college?” His reply, “Balance.”
How do you balance your life?
Real life.... 