There are some times in life you have legitimate reasons to give yourself slack. It’s important to remember, though, that a good reason can become a poor excuse given too much time.

This is something I’ve been going through in my life lately.

10 weeks ago my son was born. Having a newborn in the house is the perfect reason to give yourself grace and slack – you need it adjusting to a larger family, a child dependent on you for everything, and major lack of sleep. I quit setting my alarm so I could sleep a few extra minutes in the morning, I picked a select few tasks to stay on top of each day letting other things slide, my Bible study didn’t happen, and exercise was not top on the priority list.

That is fine for a time. If I continue in that fashion too long, having a baby just becomes an excuse for not doing what I should. Sure, I could keep coming up with reasons it’s okay not to try and make changes. For instance, I could say I’m going to wait until the little guy sleeps through the night (but my daughter didn’t quit waking up at least once a night until she was 17 months old).

What’s the length of time it takes for a good reason to become a poor excuse?

That can be different depending on the circumstances.

• Are the circumstances going to change soon or are they a permanent part of your life?
• Are there improvements in your situation?

In my case 2 months had gone past – I gave myself an adjustment period, I felt like we had a new normal.

We won’t get back to where we were immediately, but it’s important to start making baby steps. It’s a great time to remember I can’t do it on my own. I need to trust God to help me and give me the energy to get through when my eyes feel like they can’t stay open.

How to Help Move Past the Excuse:

• Make lists
• Make goals
• Move forward
• Ask God for help

I wrote out what I want to complete with exercise each week. I am going into my next Bible study intending to get up early and accomplish it. I made the decision to push myself and know what has to be completed each day to meet my goals.

At the same time, we need to remember to give ourselves grace when we mess up, sleep too long, or don’t get everything done. Some nights the baby will wake up a ridiculous amount of times, some days the kids are cranky and needy all day or last minute plans might come up.

That’s okay. It’s life. Let’s not beat ourselves up, instead let’s keep going forward as we move past the excuse.

Have there been areas of your life you have had to get rid of the excuse?

Linking up to Essential Fridays, Fellowship Fridays, The Better Mom, Woman Living Well, Mindful Mommy Monday, Mommy Brain Mixer, Teaching Tuesdays, TGIM, Mama Moments Mondays, Living Proverbs 31, Teach Me Tuesday, Tending the Home Tuesday, Titus 2 Tuesday

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