>A Bit More Work

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Monday is bed-stripping day in our house. Up until recently, bed-stripping day meant throwing all of the sheets into the washer first thing in the morning and then putting them right back on the beds as soon as they came out of the dryer later in the day. Everyone had favorite sheets, and we just used those same sheets over and over again.

But, there always seemed to be a problem. We would think the sheets were dry only to find a wet spot – right at nap time. Or, it would seem that we would have available time for making beds early in the day while the sheets were still washing or drying. When they were finally done, we couldn’t seem to find the chance to get the beds remade.

In came the new solution.

I sorted through all of our sheets and made sure that every bed had two sets of sheets, and then I got rid of all of the extras. Next I made a proclamation. Sheets would be rotated every week. Everyone would have their favorite sheets every other week. To my surprise there was very little protest to my proclamation as the kids realized how much smoother our Monday mornings would flow.

As the weeks have gone by, though, I have realized why it was that we never rotated sheets. When we just put the same sheets right back on, I didn’t have to fold any sheets! Now, every week, I have to fold sheets. It’s not that it’s too horrible of a job. There are other chores I like much less. It’s just that it’s annoying and tedious. It’s harder. It’s more work.

But, I do it. Every week. Because it makes Mondays better for my family.

Sometimes when we make decisions in life, we automatically choose certain paths because they seem to be the simpler solution. And sometimes simpler truly is better. But, there are other times when I think we miss out on what’s best for us because we don’t want to do that little bit of extra work. We don’t want to make that little bit of extra sacrifice. And so we give up what’s best for something that’s just decent. Or, even worse, we lose out entirely.

God’s best for us takes work. It takes effort that we often would rather not exert. It takes sacrifice. So what will we do? Will we be willing to step out and work? Or will we miss out?