A Peaceful Home

Every home has its own rhythm, marches to the beat of its own drum. With different callings and wildly different children what works to bring peace, clarity, and focus in one home may not in another. I’m often asked what the daily rhythm looks like within our home, so I thought I would share just a little bit of that with you today. These are just a few things that give our home the right focus at the start of the day.

My preference is to wake early. Each one of my children are early to bed and early to rise, so early rising is not only preferred but best for me. I prefer my children to wake early though and hope to keep it as a pattern for them, so that  discipline in this regard might be a little easier later? However, in the little years it is common that someone(s) wake throughout the night. This doesn’t trouble me as experience informs that this is only a season and will pass soon enough. When I am unable to realistically get up before the children the daily morning rhythm of our home doesn’t miss a beat. We have practiced the same kind of routine since before my firstborn even came into the world. It’s just second nature around here. This provides peace in our home even if we wake up late one day, because we all know the flow and pattern that we will follow.

I have the honor and joy of being a wife, homemaker, and homeschool mom to four young children. What works for me may not seamlessly fit into your life if you are in a different season with different joyful callings. So with this context in mind here’s a little insight into our day, particularly into our mornings together.

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

When we wake we seek the Lord. Every child in our home is instructed and nurtured in this way. My young ones that cannot read still receive Bible reading by mommy & daddy. My younger ones also enjoy Scripture memory lessons taught by my 2nd and 1st grader. Everyone can learn to seek the Lord on their own level and the sooner the better. We often say around here that, “mornings are for Jesus.” The Lord provides new mercy every morning. This is the time of day where things are fresh. This is the time of day to set the tone for the rest of the day. So, we purpose to seek Jesus no matter what, because we love Him and we cannot do well without Him.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

We practice this rhythm even when our mornings turn crazy. For example, if there’s car trouble, and we have to get out of the door early to give Chris a ride to work, we do not sacrifice our time with the Lord together in the hustle. We give him every moment even if we are in the car. We give the Lord our quiet mornings and our hectic ones. We don’t allow excuses. We don’t practice saying things to our hearts like, “I got up too late; I can’t.” “I have a morning commitment, I’ll get to it later.” “Well, we read last night anyway.” “We read everyday; no big deal if we skip today.” We might sound legalistic, but I’m almost certain we aren’t. I just know that if we let those little lies in they will hinder our discipline for the purpose of godliness. I want my children to know that no matter what a day holds, we can seek the Lord whether it was our ideal morning or not.  

Our hearts should house the sweet counsels of the Word of God, and if I teach myself and my children that the time He has given isn’t for seeking Him, I have robbed every single one of us of the most precious thing I can teach. I want our ears to press up against the Word God speaks. He still talks today. Why don’t we listen? Why aren’t we teaching our children to do the same? This is the practice that brings peace in the midst of everything, the good, the bad.

After Bible reading we enjoy breakfast, yes, even on the crazy mornings. If there’s no time for the Bread of Life then there’s no time for the bread that perishes either. My children will do just fine if the morning requires a slightly later breakfast, and it is a good lesson. Feed the soul before you feed the flesh. This may be too radical for some (warm smile); I get that. I think you can see the principle I’m trying to stress here nonetheless. With bellies full from breakfast it is time for morning chores. My little children will head to make up beds, set pillows to order again, put away toys or stray clothes they forgot to tend to the evening before. They’ll do the usual things of brushing teeth and getting dressed for the day. At this point in the morning Gibson Schoolhouse is about to begin. We begin by prayers together and memorizing Scripture together and often singing a new or a favorite hymn.

Our mornings are just like yours in so many ways. Everyone feels a certain amount of pressure to get things done. Each one of us has a to do list whether it’s written in a paper calendar, typed into a phone, or a little mental list. We all have feed our families, feed ourselves, take care of things around the house, tend to business, and the like. No one’s life escapes these realities, so be encouraged to press into the One who will bring the peace you need to face the day He has given.