The Importance of Hobbies

I never realized how important hobbies were until I became a mom. Because, honestly, you don't miss something until it's gone. And as moms, we fail to give ourselves the time to pursue our interests, hobbies, and God-ordained talents. We get wrapped up in the daily grind and sometimes fail to enjoy life apart from our family. Don't get me wrong, family is very important and our number one pursuit other than God; but that shouldn't mean it's our ONLY pursuit. If we don't get the needed time to pursue our own individual interests as moms, it gets difficult to serve our familywith 100%.


Let me explain. I believe the love and care we give our families, children and husband, fills us about 80% give or take. But God has made us to be individuals with gifts and talents, personalities and interests, that make us unique and special to Him. If we fail to develop and invest in some of these things, we fail to fill ourselves enough to be content and enjoy fully that first 80%. We need down time, we need Mom Time, time for ourselves.

I recently picked up painting in acrylics. I'm not an artist by any means but it was enjoyable to just achieve a goal, even as simple as painting a painting. Since I recently found out I'm expecting our third child, I thought I'd paint a maternal theme. It felt great to finish something I could be proud of. That's what hobbies do. Enrich us, grow us, develop us.

You might be saying, "But I don't have any hobbies." Well, it's a great time to pick one. Here are some suggestions:

• Reading, writing, scrapbooking



• Knitting, crocheting, quilting, sewing



• Cooking, baking



• Running, exercising



• Fishing, hiking, outdoor sports



• Drawing, painting, crafting



• Jewelry making
  

These simply name a few options for you. Don't feel guilty for spending some down time. Everyone, including God, takes time to rest after working. Follow His example and do the same.