We recognize in many areas of life, the need to put down our work at some point and be fully engaged in rest.

We make sure that our children are active, but also have ample opportunities for rest and sleep.

The sacred scriptures throughout the ages even recognize the need for rest.  Many religions mandate a Sabbath day for this reason.

But what happens in our own minds?

What happens to a woman the day she becomes a mother that she forgets that SHE actually needs a time to rest as well?

Perhaps it has something to do with a new and demanding little baby in the house.

But we will quickly lose ourselves if we do not honor our own need for consistent downtime.

So how do we do this?

With busy schedules, kids to run here or there and dinner to put on the stove, what’s a mama to do?

1. Just do it!

No I am not a Nike commercial but in order to have a time to rest you need to just do it.  So what if you hadn’t planned to take a break when all of a sudden you are gifted with a  few free hours in your schedule.

TAKE THEM!

Go for a walk or do some exercise. Put some head phones on and listen to whatever YOU want to.  But take those hours and do whatever will make you happy for a while.

2. Recognize the need for a time to rest.

Honestly, I use to let myself be “held hostage” by my family. I thought I had to be home with them All. The. Time.

I thought I couldn’t leave my kids even with their dad for a couple hours.

That’s when I started to notice things.  I started noticing that every little thing my kids did or my husband said irritated me just a little too much.  I started noticing that I felt resentful for having to do this or that.

The “symptoms” of your need for a break might be different for you, but this is just how I feel when I need some downtime.

We all have a need for peace and quiet and to spend some quality time alone.  Some of us need more of this kind of time than others, but we all need a little.

3. Make it About YOU!

Okay – the fact of the matter is that when you became a mother very few things kept actually being about YOU.

Think about it.  You went to the hospital or birthing center as a pregnant woman named ______.  And a few days later you came home a mother named “Baby’s Mom”.

Your name even stopped being about you after you had a baby!

That is why it is so important for us to take a time to rest and be ALONE.

Being alone with your thoughts renews our spirits and gives us the opportunity for creativity to flourish.  For us to learn about ourselves and love ourselves for the women we have become and are becoming.

Being alone allows us to engage in our own interests without worrying if someone else is enjoying themselves in our company.

Just as we need to spend time with our spouses to keep our marriages strong, we also need to spend time alone for the same reasons.

Finding a time to rest is no easy task in these busy modern times. But it can be done and is certainly a worthy goal to strive for.

How do you find a time to rest in your busy life?