The Solution for The Anti-Resolution

Here’s the thing I am not good at New Year’s resolutions.  I quit within a month or two.  Anyone??

I think the problem is that resolutions are ‘Me’ focused and me quits easy.  Me as in we.  Our bodies tire, our minds tire, our ideas tire, our goals tire.

In fact I tire so much I fail in almost every area when I am self-reliant, self-sufficient and self-driven.

For example, my sweet neighbor asked me to pick up her son from school the other day.  I homeschool so in my mind I think, “sure I can do that.” I should have said, “No I can’t, I homeschool”.  I am really trying hard to be a ‘No’ person.  In fact the week before I made a commitment…a resolution to say, “no”, more. I resolved that homeschooling is a full time job and just because it has the word ‘home’ in it doesn’t mean we are actually home all the time nor does it mean I sit and eat bon bons all day.  So resolved to that, when my neighbor asks me to get her son I agree with a resounding, “Yes.” Remember up until that week I was still very much a yes woman.  So the yes part of my brain was still programmed.  I hadn’t yet turned it off just resolved to do so.

The night before I set 2 reminders on my calendar, set my alarm, I was good to go.  As I hit the sack that night I totally forgot to actually charge my phone. Why? Because I am so tired that my brain is malfunctioning lately. Know where this is going?

Pick up is at 11am.

Next day, I wake up happily excited for an awesome day of homeschooling this time we are going to master algorithm basics, my 4th grader will finally be made to write a book report over Quintas and hopefully at least attempt to read McBeth and my little preschooler will learn the letter W. And if it’s a great day we’ll paint!  The morning went so well that I totally forgot my phone wasn’t with me (that’s probably why it was such a great morning).

At 1pm, I head upstairs from the basement to make lunch and I remember to charge my phone, maybe my husband called.  I charge and I finally see her name…MY NEIGHBOR!!!!!

I begin to panic.  Heart pumping fast.  Here’s a confession, I am still in yoga pants and a pajama shirt.  I am half crying, yelling at the kids to get in the van (they have no idea what’s happening), I am running up stairs to put on decent clothes, all while trying to call my neighbor to explain the horrific scenario about me leaving her 3 year old at school and how it was an awesome day at school for me (except I’d leave that part out) which is why I left him and how sorry I am!!  But oh! it all seemed so trivial and I felt like a major loser and failure at everything and we hadn’t even done grammar yet.  I was a mess over it.  She finally texts after what seemed like an eternity: “Don’t worry Bob got him: happy face.”

Um. I just forgot her son and she totally forgave me. I thought she put the happy face just to let me think she forgave me.  No! she really did forgive me because she called a couple of days later asking for another favor.  Don’t judge her!!!!

I realized that day I can’t do it all. My life is so busy and stretched in so many directions I can’t do anything well if I try to do it ALL.

I was convicted at church on Sunday when my pastor asked us to consider sacrificing something for Lent as a reminder of what He did for us.  I had never celebrated Lent before.  I loved the story and that part of history when Jesus came to rescue humanity from itself and I began to think of it’s meaning and implications.  I began to think of how {un}busy Jesus was for people.  How he came to earth for people.  I began to think of all the things that had to go in my life in order to simplify, the things that made my mind frazzled and spent, the things I wasn’t necessarily called to do.

Lent is a time Christians should consider Christ’s suffering while here on earth for our sakes.  The love he poured out on the cross in order that we may spend eternity with Him.  I don’t want to spend Lent busy, unfocused on Him or entangled in the lists I put together that neither I nor my family is called to do. This season is about remembrance and sacrifice, not spending more, not superficial celebrations or busyness.  Our sacrifice(s) should symbolize our reverence for what he did for us.

When I thought of sacrifice I immediately thought of technology.  And sweets.  Technology is the easy one.  It takes me away from the life I was called to live.  It distracts me from real relationships, real-life moments and my calling as a wife, mommy, teacher, good neighbor and ministry.  Writing is definitely a passion but definitely not more important than the little ones that remind me of God’s love for me or the man that keeps me warm at night. It’s a perfect time to turn off the extra errands of writing and producing to give them ALL my attention and take the meaning of this season in.

I want to sacrifice my blog time and twitter time.  There isn’t anything that takes my mind to lala land faster than a blog thought.  Sweets, because they are energy zappers.  And man I don’t need anymore zappers! as I stare at 3 out of 6 loads of laundry still waiting to be done and a napping child right beside me.

I need focus, I need redemption, I need simplicity.  Lent is the perfect solution.  In the sacrifice I am getting more. I am getting back my time, my focus, and my calling.

Lent is a time to remember the One who gave up everything, the One who redeemed man/woman from death’s grip, and the One who came to call simple people to live out their greater purpose and out of being tangled up in all the things they can-do but aren’t called-to. I want to focus on the thing that matters most, Jesus, and do what I am called to do not merely what I can.

I want to be Christ focused, Christ-dependant, Christ-centered.

So, here it goes, for the next 40 days I am stifling my blog thoughts and tweets.  This will be the last one for a while.  I challenge you to do the same.  What a quiet little world it would be if we all did that.

Let’s just unplug from being virtually social for a while.  Let’s reconvene after Resurrection Sunday and celebrate together.

What are your thoughts on Lent?  Do you practice Lent?  Why or why not?  What are you sacrificing?