This week school started up again for another year, and I can’t think of another day that causes such a wide-ranging spectrum of emotions among its participants. Parents who reached their summer breaking point are excited to send their kids literally anywhere. Parents feeling weepy because their little darling is growing up so fast. Kids excited for all the new and unknown experiences coming. Kids terrified of all the new and unknown experiences coming. Whether you’re crying out of joy, sadness, or anything in between, the start of something new is worth recognizing and examining.
The return to school for a lot of people is largely a return to routine. People need to be awake and ready to go at a certain time or someone is going to get in trouble. One of my favorite recent memories was watching a friend walk through the realization that when his kid starts kindergarten he’s going to need to be there before the bell instead of the “whenever is convenient” of preschool.
As you look at the rhythms of your life, or your family’s life, be sure that you are prioritizing the right things. When the world starts rushing, we need to be sure that our focus is on character rather than inertia. Paul in Romans 12 puts it this way,
“2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. 3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of themselves more highly than they ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”
The world (whether it’s the world of school, the world of your job, or the world of your neighbors) tells us constantly do more, do more, you’re falling behind, pick it up! But, we aren’t called to just do more, we are called to do what is best.
God has given you a calling and a purpose. As we enter this new season, this change in our rhythms, be sure to prioritize those things that lead you closer to God.