If anyone understands how hard it is to find quiet time with Jesus, it’s Asheritah Ciuciu. As a work-from-home wife and mama to three kids six and under, her days are filled with chatter and chores and beautiful chaos. But she’s learning to find joy in Jesus in the midst of it all, and she invites us to join her in the journey. Come sit with Asheritah and me as we visit on the front porch today…
guest post by Asheritah Ciuciu
I groaned when I heard his cries.
My infant had just woken up, and thus my morning time with Jesus had come to an end, barely five minutes since it had begun.
I’d just scribbled a few sentences of prayer in my journal. I hadn’t even managed to read the section of the Bible I had opened to.
And already, it was over. Too soon.
Especially since it had been the first time in months that I’d managed to wake up before the rest of my household. The first time I’d snuck away in the early morning light to greet my Savior: “Good morning, King Jesus.”
I’d savored the quiet, like breathing air into burning lungs after being under water for too long. My soul longed for more time alone with Jesus. But it was not to be. Not right now, at least.
Help me see You, and savor You, and serve You, I prayed as I trudged up the stairs to my baby’s room.
Just down the hallway, my three-year-old was sleeping in our bed. She had woken in the night with a fever and I’d held her close until the medicine had put an end to the chills, and sweet slumber finally reclaimed her.
But restful sleep had eluded me for six years, ever since I’d become a mother.
Not that I begrudged my children for it. These three little humans are God’s greatest blessing in my life; I’d trade a lifetime of beauty sleep to be their mom.
But if I’m totally honest, I also miss the early mornings I used to have with Jesus in the days before anyone called me “Mom.”
He turned to look at me through the crib slats as I stepped through the door. A grin lit his face, interrupting his cry mid-syllable. “Good morning, little man,” I cooed, lifting him up.
I changed his diaper as I reflected on my meager moments with Jesus, and my mind went to another meager offering. Just a few days before, my children and I were sitting at the breakfast table reading about the feeding of the five thousand.
We’ve been reading through the Bible during breakfast, a practice I’d started after my third child was born—my white flag of surrender when I realized Quiet Time may never again be quiet while I have little ones in our home.
So we open God’s Word and feed our bodies and souls together, as we sit around the breakfast table.
Earlier that week, we’d read how one little boy had offered Jesus all he had: five loaves and two fish. But what were they for a gathering of so many? How could a meager offering meet their needs?
“It’s enough!” my six-year-old exclaimed, straightening up over her plate as a smile split her face. “Jesus will feed them all.”
And indeed, we found out, He did. Because a little, in Jesus’ hands becomes more than enough. I read the familiar story while my girls ate their breakfast burritos and my son chugged his milk bottle.
Jesus took the bread and the fish, and after He gave thanks, He broke them and gave them to His disciples to distribute to everyone seated there. And He kept giving them bread and fish, and they kept handing them out, until “they all ate and were satisfied” (Mark 6:42 NIV).
Jesus hadn’t just given them a taste; He’d filled them with the little He’d been offered.
And then, to their amazement, the disciples gathered twelve baskets full of leftovers. As if it weren’t enough that the Creator of fish and grain and mankind had multiplied a little to feed a multitude, He generously provided more than enough for the days to come.
“More than enough,” I whispered again, as I finished my son’s diaper change. I held him close as I made my way downstairs, pausing to glance toward my Bible and journal where I’d left them on the couch. Then I headed to the kitchen to start breakfast.
Perhaps my moments of quiet had come to an end for the morning, but my soul was reminded that it’s alright, because a little, joyfully surrendered to Jesus, becomes more than enough.
And there would be more to come.
Just an hour later, we would gather around the breakfast table, feasting on the Bread of Life and on banana bread as we’d chatter excitedly about what we hoped our day would hold. The noise around the table would ebb and flow as I’d read the next few verses, trying to keep up with the cadence of Scripture in between cries for “more milk please” and “I need a napkin.”
Our family Bible and breakfast time might be noisier than the Quiet Time I enjoyed before, but He gently leads those who have young (Is 40:11).
And the One who multiplied the molecules to feed the crowds so long ago, can multiply our moments in His Word to feed my crew today too.
Someday, perhaps sooner rather than later, my house will again be still and my sleep uninterrupted and my mornings quiet. And I will again relish an abundance of quiet moments with Jesus.
But I don’t want to miss out on the miraculous feeding happening right in front of me each morning.
Our Savior welcomes my little children to come to Him, and graciously feeds us from His hand.
He bids this tired mama to come and find rest in Him, not by escaping the noise of my household but by seeking Him in the midst of the chaos.
I picture Jesus sitting at the table, motioning toward us just as had with His disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee so long ago: “Come, have breakfast” (John 21:12 NIV).
We gather together to give thanks and break bread, and it will be enough.
More than enough, for He is with us.
Asheritah Ciuciu is a bestselling writer and speaker, wife to her high school sweetheart Flaviu and mama to three spunky kiddos. Her passion is helping overwhelmed women find joy in Jesus through creative and consistent time in God’s Word at www.onethingalone.com.
Experience the joy of spending time with Jesus every morning over breakfast with Bible and Breakfast: 31 Mornings with Jesus —Feeding Our Bodies and Souls Together
. Each day choose between a Snack-sized devotional for those mornings you’re in a rush, and an inductive Bible study FEAST for when you can linger at the table with God’s Word.
Download beautiful lock screens for your phone to remind you to find joy in Jesus in the chaos at www.BibleandBreakfast.com/freebies.
[ Our humble thanks to Moody for their partnership in today’s devotion ]
