Confessions of a Peace Lover...

Who knew that a ten minute conversation with my kids could grow into such a thought provoking couple of weeks for me? In a simple attempt to give Megan and Clay a visual, regarding what is important for our health and growth (physically, emotionally and spiritually) and what has little or no lasting value, I have begun re-examining my own life in a whole new way.

This week I looked long and hard at the "rice"; the stuff of life that really has no long-lasting value.

I tried to tell myself that cleaning the house was rice.

It's not.

Living in filth and disorder as opposed to living in cleanliness and order has long-lasting value, physically, emotionally and spiritually, at least for me. A cluttered house leaves in its wake a cluttered mind. A cluttered mind impacts every area of my life.

A clean house is one of my walnuts.

I had really, really, hoped that exercise was rice - please?

It's not. Oh nuts! (walnuts to be exact!)

Are you ready for the confessions of this peace lover.my rice..say it ain't so..my rice, most often, comes in the form of a computer screen and keyboard.

Hi, my name is Beth, and I am a computer-junkie.

I thought about using the word internet instead of computer, but I don't even need the internet to sit and waste time in front of the computer. Give me "Picture It" - ohhhh, fun stuff! Give me "Microsoft Works" task options - especially household management ideas (I can drown my rice with thoughts of "I'm helping the family"!).

And (shame covers my face) give me spider solitaire...please, just one more game, oh shucks, I know I can win - I'll replay the same game.

And I haven't even clicked on Google yet to take me to the web.that exciting place of sale ads, news stories, and facebook....

Yup, my rice, pretty white stuff that it is, the fluffy stuff that tends to take the place of the walnuts in my life, most often parks itself in our computer room.

It wasn't always this way. I use to have other "flavors" of rice.

I can remember back - before kids - when television lured me from my "walnuts". Whether it was "Jeopardy" or "The Days of Our Lives" didn't really matter, it was a show I NEEDED to watch, and so the other stuff just had to wait. (I'll have some rice, please.)

Another ricey-filler was reading novels by authors that filled my mind with stuff it didn't need to be filled with. Reading is good, but not all reading material is good.

There was even a time when the telephone kept me from other important stuff of life. Chatting with friends became my life-line, and while chatting with friends is not bad in and of itself, I was filling my day with it and not being intentional about other things that were important. As a result, many of my "walnuts" were not making it into my "jar".

The day finally came when I knew I needed to not allow myself to answer the phone before I spent time in God's word. (And yes I got up each morning and read my Bible, first thing, so I would be free to answer the phone, right activity for the wrong reason.we'll talk more about that another day =) It was a step, no matter how small, in the right direction.

Looking back, and remembering how I recognized those "rice-filled" areas and found a way to conquer them, I know it's possible to do it again!

The most important thing to remember about rice it that a cup or two is ok, it really is! It's just when it takes over your life, when you find yourself allowing it to take the place of what is most important, that it becomes detrimental to your health - physically, emotionally and spiritually.

If you have a rice-filled life, if your daily jar has lots of rice and just a couple of walnuts, may I make a suggestion? Tell a friend. And give your friend permission to ask you how you're doing with your walnuts and with your rice.

It's called accountability.

And the long-term effect is a changed life, a healthier life - physically, emotionally, and spiritually!

My accountability pals are my "quality control", they make sure the mix of walnuts and rice is beneficial to my health, just as I do for them. It is an intentional relationship that helps me find balance, helps me discern walnuts from the rice, and helps me remember what is most important.

And that is a jar full of good stuff!

Until next time.

Beth