"Mother's, Hang In There"
The role of a mother is very essential to a child’s growth. She is the nurturer and first teacher of the child. We should never underestimate the power of our influence in our child’s life. To read an example of this, look at Luke Chapters one and two. Study the life of Mary from the time she conceived Jesus to the time He died. She played a vital role in every stage of the life of Jesus Christ: His conception, birth, childhood, adulthood, and death. She cared for, nurtured, loved, prayed for, and watched over him. She was there through it all. There is something about a mother who sticks in there with her children no matter what. You’ll frequently read in the gospels that Mary was also in many places Jesus went to. At His death on the cross, she was there.
As a mother, you’re helping your child/children in every facet of their lives. It isn't easy to bring forth life, nurture it, and develop it spiritually, practically, and emotionally. We will have to suffer long and show unconditional love even when our children are not on the right track. We must teach and instruct them in righteousness, although they may not always want to hear what we say. They may feel that we are overprotective and reject our help and counsel. While we do have to give them space to grow and room to make mistakes, we must never give up or shut down. Our children may not realize it in the present, but they will discover that they will, at some point, need our godly counsel and prayers (Proverbs 11:14).
Can you imagine the place of spiritual maturity and emotional stability that Mary had to be in to be effective in her role as a mother? She was in tune with her son (Jesus) and His needs (spirit, soul, and body). Mary’s relationship with God put her in a place where she could hear from Him and work alongside her husband in helping to parent and raise their son. Ultimately, she knew that Jesus didn’t belong to her but to God. We conceive, give birth to, wean, and raise our children, but we must not forget that our children belong to God. He has given us the responsibility to care for them, and while this may not be easy, it has its rewards.
Think about a lemon. It did not become a lemon overnight. It started as a seed. We have expectations for our seed(s) (Child/Children) and a plan for where we see them go in their lives. We want the best for our children. We want to help them grow to their highest good, but this will take hard work. They can’t get there independently of our involvement; they will need our help. Therefore, don’t become impatient. We will have to suffer long through their progression. Again, consider the lemon. We see it fully developed; however, we must consider the stages for the seed to grow into a lemon. We aim to extract the juice, containing the nutrients and vitamins we need to aid in a healthy body. Now, while extracting the juice, we sometimes get the seeds. While the seeds can be a bit aggravating, they are a necessary part of the growth of that lemon. We forget that the seeds produced the lemon tree and brought forth lemons. When raising children, trying to bring out and cultivate the good parts while weeding out the bad parts can become a bit frustrating and aggravating. This is where our longsuffering must come into their process of growing. We must choose and exhibit the fruit of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
I want to encourage you. Mothering is not easy and requires patience, unconditional love, and toil. Don’t give up; continue to put the work in, and when times get challenging (as they will, especially when your children get older), continue to show unconditional love. Your devotional time with God (prayer, studying His Word, etc.) will reinforce and train your mind not to yield to frustration but to choose God’s way of dealing with your children. Although it takes much sacrifice, raising children can be rewarding. Consider Jesus Christ, who came to the Earth, took on the sins and suffering of the world, and laid down his life for us to bring us back to God. Imagine Jesus looking back on his labor and seeing his reward. He thinks to himself, “It was worth it.” Today, we are children of God because of Jesus (Isaiah 53).
As a mother, you’re helping your child/children in every facet of their lives. It isn't easy to bring forth life, nurture it, and develop it spiritually, practically, and emotionally. We will have to suffer long and show unconditional love even when our children are not on the right track. We must teach and instruct them in righteousness, although they may not always want to hear what we say. They may feel that we are overprotective and reject our help and counsel. While we do have to give them space to grow and room to make mistakes, we must never give up or shut down. Our children may not realize it in the present, but they will discover that they will, at some point, need our godly counsel and prayers (Proverbs 11:14).
Can you imagine the place of spiritual maturity and emotional stability that Mary had to be in to be effective in her role as a mother? She was in tune with her son (Jesus) and His needs (spirit, soul, and body). Mary’s relationship with God put her in a place where she could hear from Him and work alongside her husband in helping to parent and raise their son. Ultimately, she knew that Jesus didn’t belong to her but to God. We conceive, give birth to, wean, and raise our children, but we must not forget that our children belong to God. He has given us the responsibility to care for them, and while this may not be easy, it has its rewards.
Think about a lemon. It did not become a lemon overnight. It started as a seed. We have expectations for our seed(s) (Child/Children) and a plan for where we see them go in their lives. We want the best for our children. We want to help them grow to their highest good, but this will take hard work. They can’t get there independently of our involvement; they will need our help. Therefore, don’t become impatient. We will have to suffer long through their progression. Again, consider the lemon. We see it fully developed; however, we must consider the stages for the seed to grow into a lemon. We aim to extract the juice, containing the nutrients and vitamins we need to aid in a healthy body. Now, while extracting the juice, we sometimes get the seeds. While the seeds can be a bit aggravating, they are a necessary part of the growth of that lemon. We forget that the seeds produced the lemon tree and brought forth lemons. When raising children, trying to bring out and cultivate the good parts while weeding out the bad parts can become a bit frustrating and aggravating. This is where our longsuffering must come into their process of growing. We must choose and exhibit the fruit of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
I want to encourage you. Mothering is not easy and requires patience, unconditional love, and toil. Don’t give up; continue to put the work in, and when times get challenging (as they will, especially when your children get older), continue to show unconditional love. Your devotional time with God (prayer, studying His Word, etc.) will reinforce and train your mind not to yield to frustration but to choose God’s way of dealing with your children. Although it takes much sacrifice, raising children can be rewarding. Consider Jesus Christ, who came to the Earth, took on the sins and suffering of the world, and laid down his life for us to bring us back to God. Imagine Jesus looking back on his labor and seeing his reward. He thinks to himself, “It was worth it.” Today, we are children of God because of Jesus (Isaiah 53).
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