Pearls of Encouragement for CWM September 2009
Welcome
Prayer Partners
Blog/Online Bible Study
CWM Coaching Tips
Article – What do CWMs do for themselves?
Final Thoughts

Welcome

Welcome to all the new CMWs from all over the world who have joined our community. To find out all the many ways to be involved in the CWM community go to www.christianworkingmom.com and spend some time looking around. You can look at past issues as well. Let me share a word about the CWM surveys. Over 2,200 CWMs have completed the survey. Often people leave comments on the survey which I thoroughly enjoy reading. The comments are encouraging and sometimes break my heart. I just wanted to let you know the survey is designed to be anonymous, so if you leave a comment and want me to respond please include your email address. Feel free to email me your experiences as a CWM to Kimberly@kimberlychastain.com.

This month’s article is an excerpt from my new book The Voices of Christian Working Moms. To find out more click on the link below.

Prayer Partners

I need your help. I have a CWM wanting a prayer partner. If you would like to have a prayer partner where you meet through email and pray for one another, please send an email to Kimberly@kimberlychastain.com with prayer partner in the subject heading. You will be matched with another CWM and can have the joy of knowing and praying for one another.

Blog/Online Bible Study

The CWM Blog can be found at http://christianworkingmoms.blogspot.com. Please come answer the question for the month about children and cell phones. As promised I did add a new lesson for the Online Bible study at http://cwmbiblestudy.blogspot.com. The lesson is on Worship. I look forward to hearing your input.

CWM Coaching Tips

Are you ready to receive a daily inspirational email to encourage you in your Christian walk? Then, look for CWM coaching tips to be delivered to your email box. To find out more go to: http://www.kimberlychastain.com/cwmtips.htm.

Article – What do CWMs do for themselves?

Are CWMs even on their priority list? In a survey of over 2,000 CWMs, discussed in the book The Voices of Christian Working Moms, we find that most CWMs don’t do anything for themselves. One of the questions on the survey asked what do you as a CWM do for yourself. The highest answer was I don’t at 39%. The next highest answer was exercise at 19%. One of the other questions on the survey was how many times a week do you exercise 20 minutes or more. The highest answer on that question was 22% exercise 3 times a week. Let me share a little bit of interesting information about the exercise question. Over 800 women did not even bother to answer the exercise question. I’m in denial as well with exercise. I know it is definitely needed but how can I make the time for exercise.

So, why are these statistics important? As CWMs we give a lot of ourselves at home, church, and work. Which means are own gas tanks are dangerously low. In other words, we are running on empty and fumes. It is very hard to give to others when we are not getting filled back up. Most CWMs feel really guilty when they do anything for themselves. They feel they are taking time from the family, because they work and thus are not allowed to do anything for themselves. While work can be rewarding it rarely feels up your emotional gas tank.

So, as busy CWMs what can we do to fill our gas tanks? First, of all we need to know what fills our tank? Is it time spent alone reading a book or working on a hobby? Is it time with friends? Is it getting a manicure or massage? Is it taking a nice long bath alone with no interruptions? Give yourself some time to answer that question. Once you know the answer to what puts gas in your tank then schedule time for you in your planner at least once a week or a few minutes a day. You will be amazed how a little gas in your emotional tank will make you a better, less harried Mom.

Often as Moms we become martyrs and meet everyone else’s needs but our own. Yet, when we do a little something for ourselves we will feel emotionally and physically better. We will be refreshed and ready to meet the next challenge.

Closely, related to taking care of ourselves is the importance of having a daily quiet time with God. To find out more about how CWMs have a quiet time read more in The Voices of Christian Working Moms.

Please put yourself on your to do list and take time to fill up your emotional gas tank. You are not being selfish and you will be a more enjoyable Mom to be around.

Want some note cards that reflect your Christian faith? How about a coffee mug celebrating you as a CWM? To find some really neat CWM products go to www.zazzle.com/cwmcoach*.

Final Thoughts

Take every opportunity to catch your children doing things right and praise them. We live in a world that is quick with a put down and slow to build up. Let your children know how proud you are of them and notice when they do things well.

Kimberly M. Chastain

Kimberly M. Chastain, MS, LMFT is the Christian Working Mom Coach and a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She is the author of The Voices of Christian Working Moms, 2 ebooks and an online Bible study. To find out how to receive coaching tips by email daily, go to http://www.kimberlychastain.com/cwmtips.htm. To find out more about her books go to www.christianworkingmom.com. For a free, initial coaching session send an email to free@kimberlychastain.com.