do you ever feel like you’re running around like a crazy person?

like you’re not sure where the last fifteen hours went since you woke up this morning?

i hope i’m not alone, because i do. all.the.time.

this past spring i was having a hard time. with life. with juggling and balancing being a mom, a wife, a working woman.

it wasn’t easy. i was over scheduled, underpaid (or not paid at all….since being a mom is a thankless job), burned out and struggling with the fear of what the future held.

all i wanted to do was sleep. or go be a teenager again and hop in the car to the beach. or read a book in a hammock. or pee by myself for two full minutes (i’d even take 45 seconds).

but instead the responsibility of being an adult loomed in my view. my view usually being the sink full of dishes with crusty day old oatmeal stuck to the side because i was too lazy to rinse the food off from the morning before. *sigh*

the topper was one day when a friend pointed out that i was late, again, to something we had planned. *double sigh*

i felt broken. like i was running a marathon and had gotten to the dixie cup water hand-out, only to find out that they had run out of dixie cups. and water.

bum.

another friend came up and noticed i was broken. this friend had lived a few more years than me, so she was well trained in the hills and valleys of life. she offered a great story about how she struggled the same way when she was a young mom. she said she struggled with being late, with over committing herself, with stretching herself thin. and she had a friend that did something pretty amazing…her friend made her a cute little pin (this was the 80’s) and on that pin it said, “as is.” her friend explained to her that she was perfect just the way she was. that God had made her perfectly in His image, exactly how He had intended.

oh, how i needed to hear those words.

it might not be the 80’s and i might not have a pin to wear, but i do have a great necklace that an Instagram friend made for me and i love its message and what it reminds me: that i am perfectly made in God’s image.

i come as-is.

and so do you.

if you feel worn out and not quite like you have it all together at times, you’re in good company. or maybe life is going pretty good and you just need a reminder that you can’t do it all (no one can). i need that reminder, too. life can be  hard, overwhelming, exhausting, busy {insert your own adjective here}. i encourage you to lean on the one that has helped me through many valleys in my life; God. i am a huge believer in the power of prayer. he has softened my heart, redirected me, and encouraged me when i’ve needed it the most. he has been my leader when i felt like i couldn’t run the race any longer.

i am thankful for that, i am thankful for Him, and i am thankful that he made each of us just as we are, perfectly in His image.