The blessing of being a mother is indescribable.
It's something that you could never prepare for.
Something you could only envision until your child welcomes you and you welcome your child into the world.
You truly have no idea what you're missing out on.
And with that role,
As amazing and wonderful as it is,
There are challenges that arise.
I have this ideal in my head.
I want to be a gentle parent.
I want to heal my daughter.
I want to show her what it looks like to manage emotions and stay calm.
I want to get on her level and speak calmly to her and gently to her.
I always want to be a safe space.
But there are moments and there are times when my human nature takes over,
When my temper wells up in me,
And I just don't have enough energy to give.
I have limits.
And I just want to remind you and encourage you,
If you have felt any shame,
Any discouragement,
Sorrow,
Grief,
Confusion as to how you could react in certain ways,
You're not alone.
I have talked to many of my other friends and women who are mothers who also struggle with these exact same emotions and challenges.
If you haven't heard it from your neighbor or the woman down the street or the people that you are surrounded by,
That life is hard and that being a mother is hard,
Then I just want to be a source for you,
To validate you and to remind you that you are not alone and that it is such a difficult role.
It is so hard to do well and there are days where it's just not going to look good.
It's going to be messy.
It's going to be hard.
And I have to remind myself that it's okay.
Our children are resilient and they will survive and we cannot place so much burden on ourselves.
And with that being said,
I just would love to invite the Holy Spirit into this moment to help guide my prayer over mothers and women everywhere who are caring for children.
Whether you are a stepmom in a motherly role or you have biological children,
As women it's second nature to carry out our maternal instincts in some way.
Holy Spirit,
Come and rest on us.
Come and reveal,
Come and show us what you want us to know.
What is it that you want us to know,
Lord?
This is what he's bringing up for me.
The word distraction.
The distractions of this world.
The phone.
The FaceTime.
The TV.
The fast-paced driving and getting to and from where we are trying to go.
I feel like the Holy Spirit is bringing up this idea of distraction because it is interfering with our time with our children.
And when we strip those distractions away and actually take the time to look into our children's eyes,
To notice the hair on their head,
To hold them close without a phone or a screen in the way,
Those are the moments we can never get back.
And I think it would help us reduce any guilt or shame that comes up in the day because we know that we are present.
Holy Spirit,
I ask for more wisdom.
What else do you want us to know today?
What else do you want us to know?
My daughter.
I hear him saying,
My daughter,
You think that I need to forgive you,
But I've already forgiven you.
It is you who needs to find forgiveness for yourself.
Oh Lord,
Help us.
Help us to forgive ourselves.
Help us to not be so hard on ourselves.
How?
How are we supposed to forgive ourselves or be less hard on ourselves?
What do you want us to know?
What do you want us to understand?
He's reminding me that he created us so perfectly and he didn't make a mistake.
And if he looks at us with eyes so lovingly,
Without any distractions in his way,
And he is present with us and he sees us,
He delights in us and he is so proud of us.
He just wants us to match up with him.
He wants our thoughts about ourselves to align with his.
Because the way that he sees us is perfect and pure and beautiful.
Even though we have days and moments where we may feel like we fail,
He reminds us that he takes those moments and he can transform them into something new.
He can take the hard,
Frustrating,
Painful parts of parenting and use them for our good and for our children's good.
There is nothing that he cannot transform or heal.
And so we can just rest in that truth and that presence that he is available,
That he is able and equipped to use the brokenness for his glory.
God,
We thank you for that message and is there anything else you want us to know as mothers?
I hear him saying,
You put so much weight on yourself to undo the generational curses,
To do things the right way,
You're carrying so much.
And it's okay to just take a break and be,
To not worry about having to be the martyr in your family,
The undoer in your family.
Because I am greater than that.
That's what he says,
He is greater.
And although he gives us the power to do greater works than even he did,
He says that in his word,
That he gives us this power and this authority to do even greater works than him.
But he is the one to equip us.
We can't just go out on our own will and heal our family alone.
We need to call upon his power and his authority to move in us.
But I think he just wants us to really rest in that truth and release the burden that we've been putting on ourselves to break all these generational curses from so many generations before us.
That having that desire is enough.
And trying our best is good.
And he sees you,
He sees you.
Even when you feel like no one else notices what you are doing and how you are responding and caring for your child,
God sees you.
And he is so amazed at the woman that you are.
Let's walk a little lighter and try to just remember that he has removed an obligation,
Any obligation to undo generational curses and trust that he can do that.
He is powerful enough.
It gives me comfort just to remember that sometimes he will fight the battle and we only need to be still.
Still.
Still and silent.
So Lord,
In our stillness,
Would you rise up?
Would you be our comforter and would you give us the tools to enjoy each day and find joy in the day,
In the moments?
I hope that this encouraged you in some way and that you just feel less alone as a mother.
I know that I,
I just want my daughter to,
I just want her not to experience pain.
But yet I know that pain is inevitable and it does sharpen us and show us,
Sometimes I feel like it shows us deeper parts of who Jesus is.
And so I guess I just want to be also a safe place for my daughter to land.
But the idea of unburdening myself in the process sounds nice.
So thank you for listening,
Thank you for joining me today and I hope that you feel connected and more bolstered up and more equipped and that there is less shame,
Less fear and more peace in this moment and that you would carry that with you.
Thank you so much for joining me today and I know that God will be speaking to you as well throughout your journey of motherhood,
Sending you so much love.
