The Cure to Mundane Momhood.

Oh, life...how you have kept me busy. Kaiden has been demanding extra attention lately. I love that he needs me but we literally play together every second of the day. My free time is his nap time...but it's spent taking a shower, doing my hair (a recent attempt to try and avoid the lazy non-blow dried ponytail look), making important phone calls in regards to our move, replying to emails, posting the discussion for our Bible study, house chores galore and of course, making sure to remember to eat lunch. By the time I'm done with all of that, he's up and running and I'm ready for my real break...which I don't get until Ethan comes home, dinner is made and Kaiden is tucked in bed lol. I know I'm not the first mom to go through this, and definitely not the last, but it sure tires me.

I can't tell you how many times I've heard, "Being a mom is the most important job you will ever have." While there are valid points to that statement, sometimes I have a hard time hearing it, and I could never quite figure out why until I read this:

My husband and I have often talked about our burning need to be a apart of something bigger than our mundane existence. I have two small boys, and one could well argue that raising them is the most important job I will ever have. Yet, I am worn out with the tedious nature of it all - feeding, bathing, diapering, potty training, disciplining, supporting and answer an infinite number of unanswerable questions. These things fill my day and mentally wear me out, and the idea that perseverance for the next eighteen years will hopefully result in respectable young men who contribute to society is not enough to sustain me right now. I need an even greater purpose to keep my joyfully steadfast for the long haul. 

In this passage, (Ephesians 1:3-14) Paul gives us a deep spiritual truth - he calls us to understand God's purposes and plans from before creation. As fleeting as this life is, we can all marvel at something timeless and eternal. Our place in God's story was planned before time began. He chose us! He chose us for himself to accomplish his purposes and to reveal to the entire world something beautiful about himself. When I think of God setting his purposes in motion before time began and those purposes including me, then I start to tap into something that sustains me. I am not raising my boys simply to be responsible citizens when they turn eighteen and leave my house. I am raising them in light of God's eternal kingdom purpose for both them and me. The tedious aspects of my daily life fade as I get a vision for God's eternal plan playing out in my home. There is something going on here that transcends time and therefore gives meaning to this day, this week, this month, this year and this lifetime. 

This is a snippet taken from the book we are studying, By His Wounds You Are Healed. If I could copy and paste the whole book, I would. There is so much wisdom and life application packed in it. After reading this snippet of one her chapters I felt relief. There is the answer to the uncertainty I felt when someone would make "most important job" statement. Yes, I love being a mother but no, this is not my sole purpose...this is not where I find my identity! I've known that being a mom is a role that God has given me but that knowledge is not enough to sustain me through the 3 am wakeup's or the 45 minutes spent rocking him. These two paragraphs really gave me a shift in perspective and since reading it, has helped me get through MY mundane day to day activities. I hope it brings you mom's out there some peace and encouragement as well.

Tough Love.

Oh, how God uses different situations to grow me. Sometimes I almost expect "growing periods" to come in certain forms, and then when I find myself in an unexpected situation where I have no other choice but to call out to our heavenly Father, I realize shortly after -- "Oh. Perhaps this is the purpose in it all."


E and I had a great conversation tonight. He is so wise sometimes and I really admire that about him. Sometimes .... A lot of times I find it hard to respect him. It's what I'm called to do but this is where my calling clashes with my human nature. I'm working on it but it's conversations like tonight's where I listen in awe and thank God at the same time for pairing me with someone who is leading our relationship as it should be. Anyways, this conversation was about people-pleasing vs. being spirit led. I thought my actions were pleasing to the Lord because I was trying to make other people happy, but in reality all I did was hold the reigns of my life and do what I thought was best. Instead, I need to be spirit-led on a DAILY basis. Everything is a case by case situation and sometimes people pleasing isn't the answer. Yes, Jesus showed love BUT He also was very honest and spoke directly without being "politically correct." Of course it is natural for us to revert to following social norms but my calling is greater than pleasing my neighbor, my child, my parent, my friends or even my husband. I don't want to be bound to the slavery of tiresome people pleasing...rather, I want the freedom that comes from a worry-free relationship with Christ.

One of my favorite sites - GotQuestions.org, agrees with everything E spoke to me about tonight:

When we look at Jesus’ interactions with others, we see that He willingly related with all kinds—sinners, tax collectors, Pharisees, Sadducees, Romans, Samaritans, fisherman, women, children—with no regard for society’s view of the respectable. Jesus loved these people and treated them out of that love, but it did not always look pleasant. He spoke harsh words to those who opposed Him, but He did so because it was best for them. He sacrificed His time, His emotional energy, and His wisdom for those who hated Him because He knew it would either bring them to a saving knowledge of Him or turn them away forever. Either way, they benefitted from His input. This is the essence of loving our enemies—speaking the truth in love to them (Ephesians 4:15), no matter how much it costs us to do so. 

God, take my life (once again) and lead me the way YOU want me to go. Help me to live this way on a daily basis. Give me the strength to do this through you. Teach me to love and act on that love in a manner pleasing to you. May there be more of You and less of me.