Breathing Room (4) – Family

We are at the end of our series Breathing Room and we have been talking about creating breathing room in our schedules and in our finances the past two weeks.  I hope you have taken the time to process the messages and follow up on your homework assignments.  Perhaps you have realized you might need to make some changes in your lives.  Making changes is not easy; it is much easier to blame someone or something.  But I pray that God will give you the courage to change even when change is hard.  And I really believe that when you do, you will experience that you can really trust God with your life.

So as we close this series I want to talk to you about a tension that all of us face at one point or another. Maybe you are facing it now, maybe you have faced it before, and if you haven’t, you will sure face it in the future.  I want to talk to you about the tension you feel between work and family.  Have you ever secretly wish that you would have enough time for both your work and your family?  If I could just have enough time, if there are more hours in a day, you thought.  What do you do when your work life is so full you don’t have time for the people who matter most?

Moving Forward

There may not be enough time to get everything done that you want to get done, that culture tells you you need to get done. You may have to lean one way or another. But which way are you going to lean towards? Who are you going to lean towards?

In your desire to get the most out of life, don’t lose control of your life. Create breathing room.

Discussion Questions

1. Are you a homebody or do you like to get out and do something whenever possible?

2. How much do you tend to be at ease at work but restless at home because work gives you a sense of progress and accomplishment?

3. “Mutual submission is the key to a great marriage.” How does that statement sit with you? What are some things that make it difficult for us to submit to the needs of the people in our lives?

4. Think about the way you balance your work and home life. To what extent do you find yourself absent from important family events and promising to do better by pointing to a future that will make up for the past?

5. What are some challenges you would face in choosing lean towards home rather than work?

6. What is one thing you can do this week to begin to create breathing room at home? What can this group do to support you?