Restoring Our View of Motherhood (7-day Devotional)

Day 5 of 7 One of my fears is failure. Specifically screwing up my kids. But the inevitable truth is, we are going to mess up our children. Dang it. I cannot live motherhood perfectly. I have failed, I am failing, and I will fail. Find me a vat of ice cream. This is depressing. I sat across from a counselor and friend for breakfast one early morning, seeking guidance in my life. He said it so casually I may have choked on my oatmeal. “You are going to mess up your children.” And he may have followed it with a question along the lines of “Are you surprised that you are a human being?” In the same bite of oatmeal, I discovered I was going to mess up my children and I was delusional. I had really believed I was going to parent darn close to perfect. And save them from my mess. Who had I been kidding? Aside from myself? We are given the gift of brokenness. We aren’t enough. It’s time to grab for God’s grace and realize that as a mother, we are not the hinge to health and happiness for our children. We are not the anchor. We are not the root to their growth.  It is God’s grace that is enough. It will cover our mess, and grace will even use our mess to shape and grow both our children and us. Grace turns baggage into beauty. It may take years, but that’s often how God grows beautiful things in the world—slowly and deeply.  Take a moment to write down three ways you feel absolutely “not enough” as a mother. Ask God to take those places and pour grace over them. Ask God to use your brokenness however He wants. Ask Him to redeem your brokenness. Dear God, thank You for Your grace that covers every corner of motherhood and leaves nothing untouched. Thank You that we can name our places of emptiness and You can fill us up. We need You today. Amen. From: YouVersion app