Dear Mama: Take Things One Day At A Time
I remember in the first weeks after giving birth to my son and bringing him home, I began to feel a way I had never felt before. There was an indescribable weight as a new parent that was not necessarily a bad feeling but just a heightened concern for my child that my husband and I were now responsible for. I remember in my sons first week at home, I began pumping breast milk for storage so that I would have a stash for when I returned to work. While pumping, I thought about the time it took to set up the pump, the length of time it would take to pump in each session and how much milk it would take for me to store enough for when I went back to work. I was hormonal having just gave birth and to add the task of building a milk stash. Although I had just started my journey on breastfeeding and pumping, I could tell that it would be hard work. I remember sitting at the dining room table one day while pumping and I just started crying and telling my husband how I was concerned about storing enough milk for our son. As usual, my husband was calm and always bringing things in perspective told me to take it one day at a time and that I will store enough of breast milk away for our son because the Lord will provide.
In Matthew 6:34, the Bible states "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
I really had to change my way of thinking on storing breast milk. Yes, it may sound simple but when you are in a situation and your thinking about all that you have to do, it is very easy to become overwhelmed. When I started feeling that way, I prayed and read scripture only focusing on the present. Each day I only thought about what I needed to do that day or how many times I would pump that particular day. I did not think about how much I needed to pump the following days nor the amount of milk I would need.
When you focus on one day a time, it will clear and purge your mind of unnecessary thoughts. Allowing yourself to become overwhelmed by future tasks can lead to missing the joy and gift of the present because we are too consumed about what has to be done the next day. It may sound simple, but follow the Bible on what it says about worry….. it actually works.
If you are having an issue with feeling overwhelmed or stressed about what task is on your list, I suggest reading scripture first thing in the morning when you wake up and focus on that scripture all day. If you feel that you will forget to think about the scripture, write on a note(s) and put them in places where you will notice and read scripture. Also, PRAY. Prayer is an absolute must if you are feeling overwhelmed or stressed about anything. Pour your heart out to God of all your concerns and ask for guidance in removing any worry you have and I am confident that your concerns will be taken care of.
