Ever felt as if you know that certain inner issues need to be addressed… and yet you simply plug your ears and keep going on—in the name of being the glue for the family and the one who has to keep everything running for everyone else?

Mama, Is It Time to Stop and Listen?

Last Updated on September 9, 2020 by Alicia Michelle

Have you ever known that you needed to take care of something… but you just kept putting it off?

Ever felt as if you know that certain inner issues need to be addressed… and yet you simply plug your ears and keep going on—in the name of being the glue for the family and the one who has to keep everything running for everyone else?

That was me last month with our beloved eight-year-old van.

I knew the brakes were really bad. And that it was waaaaaaaay overdue for an oil change.

And yet, I kept putting it off.

Taking the van in seemed like a huge inconvenience that I didn’t have time for. Something always kept coming up and our hectic schedule never seemed to let up.

So when I finally did take it in, I was terribly embarrassed when the mechanic told me that it was basically a miracle that my brakes hadn’t failed. Not only were the brake pads toast, but the rotors were cracked and the brake fluid was black instead of yellow. And I won’t even describe to you how disgusting he told me the oil filter was.

Our van had basically been a ticking time bomb—all because I’d been “too busy” to take care of the essentials.

And as I drove away from the mechanic (thanking God for his protection even in my foolishness), I began thinking about how busy-ness can lull us into this blissful state that everything is OK (when it’s really not).

I began thinking about myself, my kids, and our schedule. And how I often convince my soul that—in the name of being too occupied with other “more important” things—I don’t really need to do those things to take care of myself.

That really, I am fine in certain areas (despite the warning signs I may see in my heart).

Ever felt that way too? As if God is telling you that certain inner issues need to be addressed… and yet you simply plug your ears and keep going on—in the name of being the glue for the family and the one who has to keep everything running for everyone else?

That's what this post I wrote for My Joy-Filled Life talks about.

It mentions how we're finite. And how we get worn down.

Like brake pads and oil filters.

The post, titled “Time Out Mom: When It's Time to Stop and Listen,” shares the hardest truth of all to swallow (but also one of the greatest hopes).