Krystle’s Reviews > Detoured: The Messy, Grace-Filled Journey from Working Professional to Stay-at-Home Mom > Status Update

53-54 “If what we produce or work for isn’t permanent, is it still worth doing? It might not feel like it is, but even temporary work has permanent results. All the little things you do over & over everyday are seen by God. If you could watch your life like a movie on fast-forward, you would see that the dishes, laundry, books, snuggles, tantrums…add up to a life of authenticity & love.”

Pg. 53 “The humility of John exemplifies the beauty of serving Christ with no personal gain in mind.”

Pg. 52 “It is one thing to feel a sense of pride in your accomplishments, knowing you followed God’s lead & brought joy to Father’s heart. It’s entirely different to boast of your own power & ability without acknowledging the One who gave you the ability to begin with, opened the doors you walked through, & provided you with the strength to finish the work.”

51 This doesn’t mean that if you just love Jesus enough, you’ll one day love cleaning toilets. What it does mean is that the daily pouring out of ourselves into our children can be seen as an act of love for God. Our work is not our worth, but our work can be our worship. The unreached goals of your past may whisper in your ear that they will sit unaccomplished forever—& it’s tempting to believe that voice.

Pg. 50 “Imagine, for a moment, that when Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, He sighed heavily and asked each of them, “Do you know who I am? I shouldn’t be doing this.” It’s an uncomfortable image, right? Jesus is kind, meek, lowly in heart, and came to serve. He gave the example of serving his disciples so that we, too, would serve one another.”

Pg. 50 “Serving our family is a holy responsibility with eternal ramifications. God has given us these souls to care for during our time on Earth. We can view this as a privilege instead of a burden (while still managing healthy boundaries for self-care) and grow into the wife and mother of God intended us to be.”

Pg. 49 “This awareness, requires a constant humility and a willingness to adjust—for the greater good of our family—our attitudes and behavior as necessary. That’s not to say it will be easy or convenient; in fact, the opposite is true. We are given repeated opportunities in motherhood to hone this particular skill, and even when we think we’ve grown quite adept at it, we’ll be proven otherwise.”

Pg. 49 “Our personal circumstances and external behavior, for better or for worse, set the tone of our homes. It’s a secret responsibility that rests upon our shoulders to be the ones who establish the temperature in the household. In order to do this in the way God would choose, we first have to be aware—& stay aware— of our impact in our own homes.”

Pg. 48 “Kids are incredibly perceptive, & when our children see us frustrated & unsatisfied with what life has dealt us, we communicate that what we have is not enough to bring contentment—&, in essence, that they themselves aren’t enough. None of us want that to be the message our children receive.”

Pg. 48 “The truth is, in order for us to reach God‘s best, He sometimes allows us to first come face-to-face with the worst.”