Finding grace in the interruptions and purpose in the pivots
The Illusion of Control
I’ve been there — eyeing the grocery checkout, weighing which lane will move faster, counting cars on the highway to see which will merge first, or carrying way too many items from the fridge just to avoid one more trip across the kitchen.
It’s funny how those small, everyday choices reveal just how much I crave control. I like efficiency, I like order, and I really like knowing what comes next. But life — especially life as a mom, caregiver, and wife — has a way of reminding me that control is more illusion than reality.
An author I once read compared the pace of our modern lives to Jesus’ unhurried rhythm. Jesus wasn’t hurried, but He was purposeful. When He waited until morning to clear the temple, maybe it wasn’t because He was “done for the day.” Maybe it was because His timing had purpose — that moment would reach more hearts when the crowds were awake.
Even His timing held intention — not driven by exhaustion, but by purpose. And that thought challenged me. Maybe my interruptions, my delays, my detours — aren’t disruptions at all. Maybe they’re divine pauses.
When Plans Derail
My life hasn’t been mine for a couple of decades now. Whatever sense of control I once had has long been replaced by God’s greater plan.
I’m not walking in perfect faith every moment. Some days my “to-do list” looks more like a “to-try list.” I forget half of it anyway. And yet, God continues to redirect me — through spilled coffee, surprise phone calls, canceled appointments, or sudden needs from my family that completely rewrite my day.
Maybe you know that feeling too — when your day planner becomes more of a hope than a guarantee.
There was a time when these moments used to derail me. Now, I’m learning to pivot. To pause. To take a breath and whisper, “Okay, Lord. What do You want to do here?”
Maybe you’ve been there too — just trying to cross the kitchen without dropping the milk or your sanity.
And right when I think I’ve finally figured out how to stay on top of it all, life hands me another lesson — the size of a watermelon.
Purpose Beyond the Plan
Just last week, I sat in the parking lot of the infusion center while Kevin began his appointment. One of my adult kiddos called, and what I thought would be a quick check-in turned into a thirty-minute conversation about goals, home life, and the weight of growing up. My planner was open in my lap, but the only box I checked that morning was “Be present.” And maybe that was the one that mattered most.
A couple of weeks earlier, a different son called while we were in Disney World to ask if I had plans for the turkey in the freezer. Yes — a whole turkey. I laughed, imagining him at home staring down that bird like a challenge. I told him Thanksgiving was right around the corner — and right on cue, God reminded me that grown kids still need their mom, even when she’s halfway across the country wearing Mickey ears.
Then, just days after we got home, that same son offered to make homemade mac and cheese so I could finally rest. I handled the broccoli while he tackled the pasta and cheese. Forty-five minutes and a minor dairy disaster later, we were laughing through cleanup and eating a meal that tasted mostly like love.
Purpose doesn’t always look like grand plans or perfect timing. Sometimes it looks like parking-lot conversations about big decisions, phone calls about frozen poultry, and letting your grown kids experiment in the kitchen while you practice letting go.
It’s taken years for me to believe that the undone can still be holy.
These small moments — one in a parking lot, one over a stovetop — have been teaching me something deeper.
Living Redeemed Time
Living with purpose doesn’t mean life runs smoothly. It means I stop rushing long enough to notice what God is doing in the midst of the mess.
I’ve realized that the interruptions are the ministry. The delays are the development. The detours are the divine appointments.
God redeems time differently than I do. I count hours; He counts hearts. I measure progress; He measures purpose.
As Ephesians 5:15–16 reminds us, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”
Living with purpose doesn’t mean perfect days — it means surrendered ones. Maybe redeeming time isn’t about getting it all done, but about giving it all back to God.
You’re not behind. You’re right where God knew you’d be today.
When your plans fall apart this week, whisper a prayer instead of an apology.
Quiet Reflection
“Lord, help me see the purpose in every pivot.
When my plans unravel, remind me that You’re still writing the story.”Friend, maybe today you’re staring at a day that didn’t go as planned. The schedule fell apart. The kids need more than you feel you have. The to-do list is still sitting there, un-checked and un-done.
Before you rush to fix it — pause. Take a breath. Look for the purpose in the pivot.
Because sometimes, the holiest thing you can do with your time…
is to let God redeem it.
Reflection Question
What’s one interruption lately that turned out to have purpose?
Next in the Series...
Fully Present in the Pull: When Goals and Grace Collide:
Balancing the to-do list, the tug of relationships, and the call to trust God with the timing.
