There's Always More Rice

I wanted to pass on a familiar analogy that our MOPS speaker told on Tuesday night.  I have heard this many times and in many different variations.  However, she threw an unexpected twist at the end which really hit home for me since I, like most women, continually struggle to manage priorities.

The speaker stood in the front with some baby red potatoes, a pitcher of white rice and an empty quart jar.  The jar represents our life.  The potatoes represent the important things in our lives such as family, God, and job, etc...  The rice represents the little things such as bills, housework, and what's for dinner, etc.... 

If you pour all of the rice into the jar first, you soon realize that there is no room for potatoes or no time/energy in our lives for any important things.  But if you put the potatoes in the jar first, the rice fills all the crevices and you can fit more in the jar.  Our speaker confessed that for a long time she thought this analogy meant that there was time for everything.  That there was time in our lives for the important and non-important things and that she should be trying to do everything all the time.  Then, out of nowhere, she pulled out another pitcher of rice and said, "Guess what... there's always more rice!"

I admit this has been me, too, to an extent.  I'm sure John will agree with me.  He has been telling me the same thing for some time and it was refreshing to hear it from another source.  As soon as I became pregnant, and especially since we had Megan, I've been trying to do it all - potatoes and rice.  It had been nothing but disappointing when I wasn't able to get all my housework done every day and I knew my relationship with my husband, daughter and family had been pushed aside.  We talked Tuesday night about how it might just be a matter of standards.  As hard as it might be, I need to make a conscious effort to put my family and God first and do all of the rest as best as I can, serving God in everything I do.