Just as I realized we were out of strawberries and running low on toothpaste, my husband walked into the room and I asked, “Why am I not one of those people who shop once a week? Why am I always running to the store for random things?”

“We both know you’ve never been domestic,” he answered.

And we both knew he would soon head to the store to buy the things I’d forgotten to write on the list the last time he shopped.

He doesn’t mind grocery shopping, which is why you are more likely to run into him at the store than me.

I feel the same way about housework as I do about grocery shopping; I do it because it needs to be done, not because I enjoy the process. Despite nearly 33 years of marriage, (is it sad that I just used paper and pen to figure that out?), I have yet to adopt a solid schedule for cleaning my house.

But when it’s hot in the kitchen and I glance up to discover that one of my children has turned off the ceiling fan, I spring into action because only when the fan blades are still do I realize they require a little attention.

During one such ceiling fan cleaning spree, I armed myself with a bottle of cleaner and a roll of paper towels, stood on a chair to begin cleaning and suddenly the parallel to my own life was a lot clearer than the glass globes protecting the fan’s lights.

Maybe you can relate.

Everyone is busy. You may have to leave your house way too early in the morning and return much too late in the evening. You may be unemployed, yet overworked as you pick up after children or grandchildren, drive a carpool, and keep the troops fed and in clean clothes.

Or your relentless search for a job may have you drained.

I know you have a lot to do, but I want you to stop.

That’s right. Stop long enough for the wheels in your wonderfully-complex, Divinely-constructed mind to find rest. Let the blades stop spinning.

Walk away from the whirlwind of activity around you for just a moment.

Cease from thinking of the next thing you are going to add to that heavy plate you are trying to carry. Ignore the voice that says ‘respond to one more email,’ ‘pay one more bill,’ ‘watch two more hours of television.’

Ready, set, slow. Slow down. Quiet yourself and take a few moments to reflect, assess and pray. In the words of the classic railroad crossing sign: Stop, Look, and Listen.

Even Jesus sought solitude. He left the crowd to grieve over the death of John the Baptist. He chose a quiet mountainside to pray to God after a hectic day of teaching, healing, and feeding a multitude with a couple of fish and a few loaves of bread. If spending time alone with God was important to Him, it should be my top priority.

Only in these quiet moments before God am I recharged. Sometimes He shows me how to become more balanced, or less noisy, or work more effectively. Other times He points to the dirt (wrong ambitions, anger, worry) that has accumulated in my quest to move faster and faster.

A few minutes spent before God fills me with strength for my day, peace for my troubles, and direction for my confusion.

Spending time with God in prayer should begin and end each day. And it’s much more enjoyable than cleaning ceiling fans. Or grocery shopping.

Ronny Michel may be reached at rmichel@rtconline.com.