Mother’s Day is coming. Moms, this is for you!
The Scripture that comes to mind is from Matt. 11:28-30. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Is there any mom of a baby or small children who is not tired and burdened? I haven’t met her! So, if you are tired and burdened, there is good news for you.
God knows what you are dealing with right now. He knows your baby cries at all hours of the day and night. He knows you get frustrated with the constant demands. He knows that you worry about whether you are doing the right things for your baby.
You are not alone! You are part of a world-wide community of women going through the same things. Oh, true enough, you have different realities. For some, the worry about clean water and enough food add to their stresses. For some, the expectations of the extended family make motherhood a puzzle to work out. Others are left on their own to ‘figure out’ how to parent too soon after baby’s birth.
But, Jesus tells us the secret to finding rest is in your relationship with Him. When you are on talking-terms with the Lord, He can give you calm, even when there seems to be a storm around you. His Spirit will alert you when there is something you should do for your baby and also alert you to information that will make your job easier.
When your soul is at peace, everything else seems easier. So take the time to meditate on Scriptures, listen to worship songs and sing along, pray about everything. Does that sound hard? Every time you sit down to feed your baby, pray for you, your husband, your baby. When you are awake at night for a feeding or nappy change, think about a Bible passage that you are learning. Keep Christian music in the background and the Spirit will alert you to words you need to hear.
Of course, you won’t be able to do all the church activities that you did before baby. You may not be able to have the long stretches of in-depth Bible studies. God knows that. He doesn’t judge you. Don’t beat yourself up. A tender heart, open to His promptings, is all He desires from you right now. The time will come again when you can be more involved in these activities, maybe even leading studies or teaching Sunday School. But don’t feel that you are a second class Christian because you have to take some time off these activities.
I remember so well, my frustrations with my first baby. We were pastoring in a small church full of young families. As soon as the meeting started, my baby always cried first. I would have to take him out to another room. Almost immediately, another mom or two would bring their small children to me and say, “Since you’re here, can I leave mine here too?” What was I to say? “No, you can feed or change or play with mine while I go back into the meeting.” But about the time when I wanted to stay home because I ended up in the baby room all the time, something wonderful would happen. Sure enough, mine was the first to start crying. But there was one married woman who had never been able to conceive. She would come over, reach for my son, take him in her arms and walk and rock him to sleep. For one whole service, I could do nothing but soak in the love of God and praise Him. God knew how to give rest to my soul.
Your situation will be different, but I know God has everything at his disposal to give you the rest you need when you turn to Him.
Just one other note: Don’t be afraid to ask for help. There are those people around you who would help if they knew what you need.
Be blessed, Mom! These baby and small child years will pass quicker than you think. Find rest so that you can savor these days and weeks and months with your little one.