God has seen it fit to give me many reminders today, on Mother's Day, and these reminders have been so powerful to me that I feel I need to share them, so please bear with me.
Today is a mixed bag of emotions for me, and probably is for many other women too.
Today, I am reminded, among all the well wishes, that Mother's Day is not just about being pampered for a day, and it's not all roses and Hallmark greetings.
Today, I am thankful it is a beautiful day outside that God has made, a wonderful day to celebrate, but I am reminded that Mother's Day is really just a commercialized day that was created by man to remind us to do what we should do every day...and that is to love and honor and appreciate mothers of all generations, including our spiritual mothers.
Today, I am thankful for my own mother for her love and support through the years, even when it was sometimes hard being my mom; for my grandmother and her love; for my mother-in-law who raised a wonderful man that I call "husband"; for the mothers of our previous generations who are no longer with us; and for all the other godly women I know who inspire me with their examples of motherhood.
Today, I am also reminded that this day is painful for some, and my heart aches for women who are hurting.
Today, I am reminded that I used to be one of those women hurting on Mother's Day, feeling the pain of my own regrets and loss and feeling I was on the outside looking in.
Today, I am thankful that the Lord can heal that pain, no matter how deep, and that He draws us closer to Him in the midst of our suffering.
Today, I am reminded that our God is the Sovereign One, and nothing happens without first being filtered through His hands...even those things I do not understand.
Today, I am reminded of the strength and faith of women who have endured a great loss.
Today, I am reminded that Jesus feels joy when we feel joy, but that He also weeps when we weep.
Today, I am reminded that a little over three years ago, we experienced the anguish of waiting for assurance that this little boy would be our son, and how our situation could have turned out so differently. And I can't fathom why one person's experience is different than another's, but I know that God knows why.
Today, I am thankful for my son, and two children on the way, who call (or will call) me "Mom."
Today, I am reminded of how imperfect I am as a mother, that I so often fail miserably to parent with the kind of grace that my loving Father in Heaven shows me, and am reminded that I am forgiven and He is changing me into the likeness of Christ every day.
Today, I am thankful that God has given me a second chance, and now a third and fourth chance, to be a mother; that He is the One who can redeem a person and any situation.
Today, I am reminded that my children may one day have mixed emotions on this day as well, as they (hopefully) celebrate my love for them, but perhaps also feel the loss of the woman who gave them life.
Today, I am thankful for the women who gave each of my children life.
Today, I am reminded to cherish that life, because we are never promised tomorrow.
Today, I am reminded that motherhood is not about sharing the same genetic code, but has everything to do with the love in a woman's heart, the desire to nurture and care for another human being, often foresaking her own desire's for the well-being of this beloved child.
Today, I am thankful that the one bloodline that truly matters above all others is the bloodline of Jesus Christ, who shed his blood for my redemption so that I could be in right-standing with God and be adopted into His family.
Will you join me in praying for women who may be struggling or feeling mixed emotions today? Please pray for:
- young women who have questions or concerns about what it means to be a mother in today's society, and making wise decisions about whether or not they want to be mothers
- women who are currently facing difficult decisions related to an unplanned pregnancy and that they will choose life
- women who face the painful regret and loss of an aborted child
- women who face infertility or other reproductive issues
- women who have had previous miscarriages or ectopic pregnancies
- women who have experienced the loss of a child, whether stillborn or later in life
- women who are temporary guardians or foster mothers
- women who gave birth to a child and placed that child for adoption
- women who are waiting to be an adoptive mother
- women (and men, too) who have lost their own mothers
Please pray that these women will be reminded that He gives enough grace to get through today, and His grace will renew tomorrow; that He will give them comfort and peace and healing in the midst of their struggle or pain; that He will deliver these women and will redeem their affliction, whatever it is, for His will and His glory.
2 Corinthians 1:8-10 says: "For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced...For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again."
Let us look to the one true Redeemer, and set our hope on him! "The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on him in truth." (Ps. 145:18)
I pray His blessings for you on this Mother's Day!
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