Not every week, but there are definitely many times that I show up to church in black leggings and a pony tail. My kids are generally pulled together, but I’m last on the list on Sunday mornings to get ready to get out the door. Not every week, but a number of them. And I am thankful that I found a church that embraces me showing up, with all my chaos in tow, and welcomes me as we are.
Cool confession, what’s your point?
Getting to church with kids is the the hardest weekly calendar appointment for me to keep. We have dance class and gymnastics and I paid money for my kid to learn those skills, and I have no problem incorporating those into our schedule, but maybe it’s because I’m not paying my church a set fee with expectations around what they deliver, so it is easy to fall into the habit of not going. And honestly on Sundays, as I am thinking about Monday already and the meal prep that I want to do, or the yard work, or the family fun activity like skiing or playing outside that I’d like to do instead of going to church, it’s easy to find a reason not to go. So getting ready to go in nice clothes, with make up on, adds one more task to the day that is supposed to be a day of rest. When I figured out for myself that showing up is more important in building my faith, than showing up perfectly pulled together, acting like I have it all together for anyone in the congregation that I thought wanted to see that, I was able to come as I am. A 2023 working mom doing my best.
52 hours per year
Changing my perspective of attending church has helped me get there more often to fill up my faith cup. Our pastor aims every week to finish the service in 1 hour. When I really got to thinking about that, if I show up every week (which I won’t with vacations and illnesses), I at most if I did the bare minimum, would be committing 52 hours of my year to attending church.Of course, I can choose to participate in any of the other Bible studies or church activities, but man, that was an eye opener for me. I thought about how I put in 40 hours per WEEK to my job, and it was like a veil was lifted for me for how little time I actually I spent at church.
The church is the people
I feel closest to God when I am outside in nature, so it’s sometimes hard for me to understand why I need to go to a physical building at a specific time when a run or a walk through nature gives me the most peace and allows me to talk with God with a clear mind. However, I have realized that I don’t go to church for the building. I go there to learn something from our pastor. To introduce faith to my children. And it’s the people that bring faith to life. I love the people in our congregation. They pray for us and I pray for them. We are an extended family. They have been there for me and different family members during the good and the bad. The building is just where we meet.
Building a faith habit
I talk a lot about building habits as it relates to wellness. To me, faith is part of my wellness. If you don’t attend a church right now and are looking to find ways back to build this habit, think about what church you need in your life to support your habit? Is your church accepting of a mom who shows up in leggings? Can you commit to less than 52 hours per year to build that habit? It’s a hard one to build because it isn’t something you are going to do every day, but instead once per week, but it is possible.
Happy Easter! He is Risen!
If you are in Western New York and would like to check out my church, send me a message and I’m happy to give you the details of where I attend! Hope to see you there…in leggings, with a cup of coffee, and all your chaos.