I am so excited to finally touch on motherhood! I have yet to write on this topic because God has showered me with so many truth-filled nuggets about him during this season I didn’t know where to start. While all that I have been learning is so new to me some things remain the same. What I am reminded of most is God’s purpose in creation, humanity, the church, and my life. It is for His glory to be revealed. When I think about my children I know they were created for this exact same purpose. Children are God’s gifts created for His glory! Paul’s doxology in the book of Roman’s has greatly encouraged me in my mothering to maintain an understanding of my smallness in comparison to the greatness of God.
“For who has known the mind of the Lord or who has been his counselor?”
“Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?”
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
Romans 11:33-36
I am emphatically moved after reading these short but powerful verses every single time. They stir up humble gratitude, adoration, and of course praise. It is not only the beauty found here in this doxology that makes Paul’s outbreak of praise so grandiose but it is all that He has poured out in the chapters leading up to this point.
He has touched on God’s wrath hovering over all the ungodliness of men and how He is just to exercise righteous judgment towards all ungodliness. He explained that no one person is righteous before God yet because of His great love and mercy God sent Christ to die for sinners. So that by God’s grace towards sinners through faith in Christ alone, all people have the opportunity of the gift of eternal life! This is so that we can be alive to God in order to bear fruit for God. That is the sweet satisfying good news of the gospel that leads to the praise of the Father!
For the Glory of God
While I can attest that motherhood is laced with God’s goodness it is not a cookie-cutter road for many. My own road has been filled with uncertainty, disappointments, and unanswered questions. Sometimes when life has dots that don’t connect, futures that have yet to be unveiled, or situations that just don’t make sense, that is where God has intentionally placed room for His purpose. Just like the death of Lazarus, a beloved friend of Jesus was not to end in a loss but used to show the glory of God, our own lives have been providentially arranged to accomplish His will and give Him glory.
I have wrestled with answering the call to lay down my life for another. Making the sacrificial decision to surrender my hopes, dreams, and my own body for the sake of a child. I have endured the deep-seated pain of miscarriage. The heartache accompanied by loneliness and sorrow. I have been confronted with the possibility that becoming a mother was not God’s plan for my life. Yet I hoped, waited, and believed the Lord. I have battled fear with faith through the unknowns of pregnancy after a loss. In hindsight, these disappointments and seemingly unmet needs deepened my faith and pointed completely to the glory that only belongs to God.
Finding God in Motherhood
As parents, we love doting on our babies and delighting in them. I now have a physical representation of what that looks like for me spiritually. The greatest privilege I have received in this season is experiencing God’s role in my relationship with Him as my loving Father. To share how He has tenderly cared for me in this season is more than I have words for.
I may never fully understand why the king of the universe has chosen a wretched sinner like me to be His daughter. Cherished. Chosen. At the same time, I am certain that God wants me and has good intentions for me. Even more than my own good intentions for my child are the Father’s intentions towards him. Over the past year, I’ve developed a keen awareness of my dependency on God and I am even more certain that He can be trusted. He has proven to be faithful over and over again. Parenting allows us the opportunity to give our children a glimpse of the character of God. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we can be a living example to them of what their Heavenly Father is like.
God’s Sovereignty: His Utter Control Over All the Details
Since the United States is not under a monarchy, I find shows about kings and queens fascinating because they give me a depiction of what it is like to have a high view of kingship. I find the interaction between the family members and the monarch most interesting. At the same time that they have a highly relational bond with the king, they also must acknowledge his authority over them. The king has the final say over everything pertaining to his kingdom. Conflict can occur when a king must choose between their duty to the crown and their love for a family member. It is incredible how many times a king’s love motivates his decisions. We see this played out in the story of Esther.
I am so thankful that God is not like earthly kings! He is never conflicted but perfectly in control over all the things occurring in heaven and on earth, in my life and in my child’s life, in this present age and in the age to come. How satisfying it is to rest in the fact that God sees and knows all that is transpiring over my life. There is comfort in knowing that He loves me and His intentions are always good towards me. Remembering this truth frees me to relinquish any attempts I try to control the events in my life.
Motherhood Reveals God’s Power through Prayer
I began using a prayer journal to see how God answers my prayers sometime after I had my son. As a result, I am now more dependent on seeing God work in my mothering more than what I am to do. As I recorded His answers of yes, no, or not yet I realized that many of the yes answers were during some of my weakest points and His no’s were when I was full of pride and dependent on myself. Most importantly I saw that God actually heard my cries! Now, I am more inclined to go to Him in prayer first (most of the time). Whether your child is sick or just won’t sleep through the night, Our Lord welcomes us the opportunity to humble ourselves in prayer to experience His power. Even if His answer is not a solution but a resounding I am with you.
Experiencing the wisdom of God’s ways in our lives is a sure way to look at motherhood in view of God’s glory. In light of His mercy, we attest to His power in our tough circumstances. This creates prayers circulated with praise, echoing that for from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
