Do you ever feel like things in your life are spinning out of control and you can't seem to get a handle on it? Maybe you are preoccupied with one area of your life, like your career or a relationship, and you leave the other areas dangling.

I have been struggling to find the time to write my blog this week. Every time I think of a topic and try to sit down to start writing, something or usually someone(my toddler), interrupts me and I can't get it going. When I get a free minute to start writing, again I always get interrupted or my thoughts move on to something else. However, I believe now that God wanted to lay something else on my heart to talk about.

I am having a difficult time with my son, Caleb, who is seven years old. He is my strong headed, rule breaking, crazy rebel son. Him and I tend to butt heads, and I have a suspicion it's because we are so similar. But, today God showed me a powerful lesson. We were at church and when I went to get Caleb from children's church he was in a bad mood. He would not do what I told him, he wouldn't listen to what his Papa was talking to him about, and just having a bad attitude. We got in the car and I asked him what was going on. He said nothing and was very quiet. There was obviously something going on with him. He gets in these bad moods quite often and it makes me and his dad so upset and frustrated with him. When we got home I put his brother, who is almost two, down for a nap. I made him some pancakes, his favorite, and sat down with him, just the two of us, and talked. I noticed he changed is attitude right away and was glad it was just us two together. I asked him if he was upset with us. He said he wasn't upset, but didn't know why he wasn't in a good mood at church. We got that much needed time to talk and connect, which made us both feel better.

I say all that to say this, God is the one who knows us on a deep personal level and cares about us so much that he keeps us, and all our issues, together by His grace. His grace for me gave me grace for my son. God's love is always constant and unconditional, even when we are messing up and can't keep our lives all together. He will show us just at the right time what we need to do. It's our job to know Him enough to hear and obey Him. If your situation seems hopeless and frustrating, keep pursuing God, He will show you His grace so you can then show yourself grace.

When I sat down with my son, one on one, I wasn't letting anything distract me and I was able to give him my full attention, which is what it took for us to connect and for him to trust me enough to tell me his true feelings. Isn't that what God wants from His children as well? He wants us to sit down with Him, give Him our full attention and have a conversation with Him, a relationship with Him. When we do that, we connect and build trust so that we can walk in the direction we need to go in order to live the life we were meant to live. Let's not let our busy life get in the way of the important things. Without that one on one time with my son, we would still be dangling in the wind, just barely "keeping it all together".

3 Ways To "Keeping It All Together":

1. Tell God you are giving Him control of your life and casting all your cares to Him.

This is the most important one. When you trust God enough to give him all your worries and cares in life, that is when He can really prompt you or "check" your spirit. That tells you something isn't balanced in your life and you better get it together, by My grace I give you. "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." Psalms 55:22

2. Write a clear action plan to get the results you desire.

Never try to change something in your life without writing a plan to follow step by step. You probably will notice when you look back on the things you said you would change, but didn't have a plan in place, you never accomplished those goals. So be S.M.A.R.T-Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-specific with your goals.

3. Get an accountability partner to share the areas you are struggling with in your life.

The reason I love relationships with people I can count on to help me, is because I won't accomplish my goals alone. No one can, that's why God encouraged relationships. Tell your accountability partner, whether that is your spouse, friend, family member, or coach, you want to improve on connecting with your son/daughter, do better at time management and balance, learn to forgive your parents, etc. Be specific in the area you most need grace and stay encouraged and accountable through your partner. Show them your action plan so you can stay on track and get results!

Do you have the same struggles I have, and so many others, to stay balanced and have grace when things are left dangling? Please share your struggles and comments below and lets do this together!

With love and blessings,

Nikki Wright, Certified Life Coach