I yell, “10 minutes until we have to leave.”

Stephen is travelling, I am on my own this week.

Isabel and Julia are scrambling around to gather their things for school.  Grace has an appointment at the orthodontist.

We get into the car and I drive like a mad woman. I must get my kids to school quickly in order to pick up my mother-in-law.   I have committed to driving her to the airport before I take Grace to her orthodontist appointment. I go around a corner and my coffee spills all over. I dab it up with the napkin Isabel is using for her to-go breakfast.

I drop the girls off at their schools, I rush back to the house, pick up Grace.  I rush to pick up my mother -in-law.  Time is ticking.  The appointment is approaching and I realize I can’t do both.  I can’t get my mother-in-law to the airport in time and my daughter to her appointment on time.  The traffic is going to slow us down.  I call my mom, and I drop Grace off at my mom’s and she will get her to the appointment.  I drive to airport.  My mother-in-law has been successfully dropped off (and I checked the backseat to make sure I did not drive away with luggage while in my chaotic morning).

Grace calls, “ Mom, nobody is at the doctors office.  Are you sure my appointment is today?”

My scheduling deficiencies have taken over again. Wrong day, her appointment is in two weeks (at least we didn’t miss it).

I pick up Grace from my mom’s and drop her off at the school.

Friends…that was the first two hours of my day.

I come home, dive into email, trying to get some things out before deadlines, but before I know it, the clock strikes noon. I am hungry and I haven’t stopped.

Finally, it dawns on me. I need to sit, read, and pray.  I didn’t start my day with my prayer time and bible. I just rushed in.

So I decide to stop and just listen. My dog is chewing on a bone and I can hear the saliva swishing around in his mouth and it grosses me out.  The neighbor is running a power tool and I am distracted.  My phone dings with a text. I try to ignore the noise.  I try to block out the chaos of my day and the feeling of frenzy.

So I open my bible and read.  I read about the river of life and I think about it.  I want it.  I want to be in that river.  I want to float down that river and soak my hair in that river…my hair is dirty, it has not been washed today.  I want to drink from the river; I am thirsty.  I want to sit by the river and listen to the sounds.

My eyes water up with tears as I let go of my day.  For a few minutes, the river carries me and I let go of stupid stress. I get down on the floor, and with my face to the ground, I worship the Lamb of God.  I worship at His feet. My world stops and the peaceful river fills my soul.

Why do we do this to ourselves?  Why do we have such chaos that takes up space in our lives?   Yes, the world keeps going, and our lives keep moving, but we must take time to stop.  We must take time to sit and let the river of life quench us.