Do the Sticky Stuff

by Whiney Permann

For me, one of the most frustrating parts of being a wife, mother, and woman is that most of what I do does not stick. Let me explain.

I do the dishes. Every dish in my house in clean. Then what happens? Someone gets a drink. Then someone eats off a plate. And then? Time for dinner. My clean dishes have gone bye bye.

Does this sound familiar? You do the laundry, someone spills. You make a bed, it gets undone. you sweep, crumbs get dropped. And here's my favorite--you change a poopy diaper, and 2 minutes later...the "follow-up" arrives.

SO much of what we do as women never stays done. It doesn't stick. And if you are like me, you may feel like you are often running around in circles.

On one particularly challenging day, I was reading in Luke chapter 10. You remember Mary and Martha? This is the part where the Lord comes to visit the sisters at their home. While Mary sits at the feet of the Savior and listens to Him teach, Martha is running around "cumbered about much serving."

She asks, "Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."

Never before had I noticed those last 8 words, "which shall not be taken away from her." Learning from the Master was something that Mary got to keep forever! It stuck. Laundry, dishes, full bellies, clean diapers, made beds--although they are important and HAVE to be done--they all get taken away from me. There are, however, a few things that STICK.

Scripture study sticks. Prayer sticks. Playing with my kids sticks.

Can you think of other sticky things? A date with your husband, writing in your journal, having family home evening...in my opinion these are all things that cannot be taken away from us. They stay forever. They stick. The effects of these simple acts--little by little and line upon line--change our very natures, and shape our eternal destinies.

Spend time each day doing the "stinky things." No matter how chaotic my day has been, no matter how may times I re-sweep the floor, re-wash the dishes, or re-gather toys, I feel satisfied if I have spent time doing the things that matter most--those few precious things that cannot "be taken away" from me.

So go ahead--do the sticky things today!

Whitney Permann is part of the LDS group Mercy River. http://mercyrivermusic.com

Painting is "The Better Part" by Simon Dewey.