As a mom, I can tell you no matter how many times you plan a day, it can change in the blink of an eye. If you don’t believe me just follow me around for a day and I can show you how many times a day mine changes from phone calls to someone needing something even though I need to work.
I can wake up thinking I know exactly how everything is going to go that day, and what needs to get done, and how I’m going to move through the day. But life in a home like mine doesn’t always follow the plan I set before my feet even hit the floor.
Most mornings, before my eyes are even fully open, my mind is already running. I’m going over everything that needs to happen that day, everything I didn’t finish the night before, and everything I already know is waiting on me the moment I walk into the kitchen. David is already gone to work, the house is already in motion, and I’m already trying to catch up to a day that hasn’t even fully started yet.
I already know there’s a good chance I’ll need to wake Charlie or Bradley if they’re working. I already know I’m going to walk into the kitchen and see dishes stacked from the night before, maybe trash that didn’t get taken out, and little things that somehow always seem to land in my hands first thing in the morning.
Gerald does help with the dishes more often than not, and I’m thankful for that because it truly does make a difference. But even with that help, there is still always something waiting. Something unfinished. Something that becomes part of my morning whether I planned for it or not.
And I wish I could say I woke up this morning feeling peaceful and ready, like everything was already in place and I could just move through the day with ease. But that’s not how it usually is. Most mornings don’t start with peace. They start with motion. They start with responsibility. They start with chaos that’s already in progress before I even fully catch up to it.
But this morning wasn’t just chaos either. It was somewhere in between. Not fully overwhelming, not fully calm, but that small space where you’re aware enough to feel everything without being completely consumed by it. And I’ll be honest, I’m thankful for that middle ground, because sometimes that’s the only place I can breathe long enough to think clearly.
I got out of bed and walked downstairs and I stood in the kitchen for a moment just taking it all in, not rushing to fix anything yet, just letting my eyes move over everything that needed attention. And I could feel that familiar weight settle in. Not just the weight of chores or tasks, but the weight of responsibility that doesn’t really clock out. The kind that follows you from room to room even when you’re trying to gather yourself.
And I remember thinking, I just need to stay ahead today. If I could just plan it right, if I could just get ahead of everything early enough, maybe the whole day wouldn’t feel like I’m constantly chasing it. But as a mom we all know that isn’t going to happen.
As I thought that, I knew something I don’t always give myself credit for. Even the best plans don’t stop life from shifting. Even the most careful preparation doesn’t stop interruptions, needs, or moments that pull everything in a different direction.
And that’s where God started showing me something deeper than just planning ahead. Because planning ahead isn’t only about organization or trying to stay in control of the day. It’s about having enough structure in place so that when life shifts, I don’t completely fall apart with it. It’s about learning how to move through a day that doesn’t always stay where I put it.
As a mom, I’ve learned that God doesn’t always follow my plan for the day. In fact, most of the time He gently redirects it. Not in frustration, not in chaos, but in a way that reminds me I was never carrying it alone in the first place. More times than not the day ends up better when I let him take the wheel.
As a mom, wife and business owner I can plan my morning, but I can’t control every interruption. I can plan my responsibilities, but I can’t control every need that shows up. I can even plan my intentions, but I can’t control the moments that require me to shift everything without warning.
And yet, somehow, the day still holds together. Not because I did everything perfectly. But because I wasn’t the one holding it all together to begin with. And maybe that’s what God was really teaching me in the middle of a very ordinary morning that felt anything but ordinary.
That planning ahead can help me move through the day. But trusting Him is what carries me through it. Even when the kitchen is messy. Even when the day starts before I’m ready. Even when life doesn’t follow a single thing I planned. He is already in it. And that is what changes everything.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
