Commitments

Two weeks ago, I made a promise that I would exercise three days each week with my children.

I've always known that healthy bodies contribute to healthy minds, but I have allowed academics to swallow up that chunk of time that my children and I so desperately need in order to rejuvenate ourselves, a time in the early morning to be quiet, to listen, to reflect on what matters today.

No more. It is too important to be neglected any longer.

So we rise at 6:00a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Bikes and helmets are loaded the night before. The lake is not around the corner, but He is faithful to use our freeway time to greet the day with eyes fixed on Him. Pulling out of the driveway, we listen to Dr. J. Vernon McGee for the last fifteen minutes before 7:00a.m. I tell my children that when I was a little girl I listened to him in the car, too, for he was a favorite of Grandma's. Sunbeams begin to stream above the horizon, but I have already been warmed by childhood memories and a hot cup of steaming coffee. The morning greets us...we are, all of us, smiling, inside and out. It feels good.

There are no doubts. I heard His voice. My children will be warmed by their childhood memories. They will remember and cherish this purposed time that was set aside each morning to quietly reflect upon their Creator.