When a Good Day Isn't Measured by Productivity
A personal reflection on a moment of conviction in motherhood, and the gentle reminder that our children are not interruptions to our work—they are our work. Learning to measure a good day not by productivity, but by faithfulness.
Laura Pelletier
6/3/20263 min read
When a Good Day Isn't Measured by Productivity
“Mama.” “Mama.” “Mama.”
It became a simple background noise as my gaze was fixed on the Amazon order I was placing. The items I was purchasing were for her, but I wasn't paying her much attention.
The urgency continued in that sweet little one-year-old voice. “Mama.” “Mama.”
She so desperately wanted to show her Mama some silly face she was making. Unfortunately, I was so fixed on my phone that it took me a minute to even realize that my little girl was asking for her Mama's attention.
I snapped back into focus and realized she had been calling my name for some time.
“Yes, baby,” I said with some reluctance since I'd been interrupted from my purchasing endeavor.
“Ahahahaha!” she exclaimed while moving her head back and forth crazily. Then she laughed as if she was hilarious and wanted me to watch it again
In that moment, a wave of conviction hit me.
We have all seen the movie trope where the career-driven Dad provides everything for his kids except the one thing they actually want—his time. I always root for the Dad to grow and to notice that his child just needs him, yet I so often fail to see the comparison in my own life.
The Wrong Measure of Success
You should know that I love lists, and I love being “productive.”
The other day, while I was telling my husband about my day, I confessed that the measurement I have been using for whether I had a good day or not is if I was “productive” or not. I would say something like this when he would ask me about my day:
I believe the Lord used a few conversations with my husband to show me my incorrect thinking. When I view my day through that lens, our children can accidentally start to feel like interruptions to my “real” work.
I was convicted. I needed to stop treating my kids like obstacles to productivity and start treating them as the greatest responsibility I have.
What a beautiful shift in perspective. What a biblical perspective. It goes against everything modern culture tells us about time, efficiency, and success.
A Biblical Perspective
Psalm 127:3 “Children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.”
Our children are God's blessings to us. The reward that is being spoken of here is not one that is earned; it is a reward of grace. God graciously gave my children to me.
Please don't misunderstand me. God has given me work that must be done:
Laundry needs to be folded
Dishes need to be washed
The house still needs to be cleaned
Responsibilities still exist
But He has also given me children.
My to-do list wasn’t the problem. It was that my to-do list had become the measure of whether the day was successful. I bought into the lie that a good day means crossing off tasks, keeping a pristine house, and getting things done.
The Children Are the Work
But flipping that script changes everything:
The children aren't interrupting the work. They are the work.
A Question for You
The questions I am training myself to measure the day by are:
Have I responded well to my children today?
Have I prayed today?
Have I been faithful to what God has placed in front of me today?
I am in no way perfect at this yet, and I am still learning and growing by God's grace.
Are you measuring your days by completed tasks or by faithfulness to the responsibilities God has given you?
“I had a hard day. I didn't get anything done today because the kids didn't sleep at the same time, and Barrett was clingy.”
