Word to the Momma's...
Nehemiah 6:3 "I am doing a great work and cannot come down."
My son will be a senior next year. I know. I cannot believe it either.
When you begin to see the end of the road so to speak, you tend to view days differently. Not as endless mounds of mothering, teaching, cleaning, cooking, disciplining, training....like it was in the beginning of your mothering years...
But, of the stuff that really matters. Like, have I left them with something to sink their teeth into as adults?
You question if you have done enough, or are doing enough.
You look at young mothers with little babies and think, "Did I cherish those moments?"
The enemy can really, really, really whisper words of regret and condemnation if we are not careful.
As I was folding my son's laundry this afternoon, I thought...should I let him do this today? Maybe I should just leave a big pile on his bed for him to put up when he gets home.
However, I heard a whisper in my heart, "you get to do this, Jill."
I am all about responsibility. 100 percent.
But, I also want my children to be on the receiving end of grace. Of service. Of devotion.
I want to model this for them. Live it out for them.
As a little girl my only dream was to be a wife and a mother. I get to live out daily this dream.
I get to be their momma.
I get to be Lem's wife.
It is my greatest honor.
And, my greatest work.
Life can pull and tug at my heart to drag me away from this work. Surely the world desires my talents. My gifts. It needs them.
Isn't that what we often believe as mothers?
We feel this tug to do more. To be more. To strive more. To be noticed more. To be applauded. To be recognized.
It is attractive to us.
But, it's a distraction from our greatest work.
Our families.
There is no greater work to be done then that of raising our children and being our husband's helper. We were made for this.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
23 The man said,
My son will be a senior next year. I know. I cannot believe it either.
When you begin to see the end of the road so to speak, you tend to view days differently. Not as endless mounds of mothering, teaching, cleaning, cooking, disciplining, training....like it was in the beginning of your mothering years...
But, of the stuff that really matters. Like, have I left them with something to sink their teeth into as adults?
You question if you have done enough, or are doing enough.
You look at young mothers with little babies and think, "Did I cherish those moments?"
The enemy can really, really, really whisper words of regret and condemnation if we are not careful.
As I was folding my son's laundry this afternoon, I thought...should I let him do this today? Maybe I should just leave a big pile on his bed for him to put up when he gets home.
However, I heard a whisper in my heart, "you get to do this, Jill."
I am all about responsibility. 100 percent.
But, I also want my children to be on the receiving end of grace. Of service. Of devotion.
I want to model this for them. Live it out for them.
As a little girl my only dream was to be a wife and a mother. I get to live out daily this dream.
I get to be their momma.
I get to be Lem's wife.
It is my greatest honor.
And, my greatest work.
Life can pull and tug at my heart to drag me away from this work. Surely the world desires my talents. My gifts. It needs them.
Isn't that what we often believe as mothers?
We feel this tug to do more. To be more. To strive more. To be noticed more. To be applauded. To be recognized.
It is attractive to us.
But, it's a distraction from our greatest work.
Our families.
There is no greater work to be done then that of raising our children and being our husband's helper. We were made for this.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
23 The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
for she was taken out of man.”
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
for she was taken out of man.”
24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. Genesis 2:20-24
I have bought the lie many times that the world needs me. It needs my writing. My teaching. My whatever....
Surely, I can do all of these things and be available for my family as well.
Wrong.
Something will suffer.
More than likely it will be our families.
The season of parenting kids under our roofs is very short...trust me on this one.
I desire with all of my heart to pour every ounce of love, devotion, joy, teaching, discipling...into these children of mine.
I cannot guarantee a good outcome, but I will choose to trust God with His plans for them.
As mothers, we dig the ditches, God fills them.
But, we must dig the ditch.
We have to be careful not to dig ditches that are not in our soil in this season. We must dig the ditches we are standing in and on at this moment with our families.
God will use our efforts, our tireless days, our long nights....
He will produce fruit in some how and in some way.
But, we must stay in the garden. Even a small step away and we risk the enemy swooping in.
As mothers, we must be diligent. Devoted. Determined.
We get to do this...
folding more laundry,
jill
