When I say motherhood is no joke, I mean it. It's no joke! :)
I'm thinking back to when I was pregnant, and do I recall anyone telling me how hard it was going to be?
Not that I can remember. It was all, "You're going to love being a mother." and "Get ready for the best of life to begin." Those sentiments in general. And were they wrong? Absolutely not! Sure, we laughed at the amount of poop-handling and sleepless nights, etc. But still, there seemed to be something missing in the preparation. Can anything really prepare you for this? I've only been a parent for FOUR years, and I know one thing already.
Being a parent is really, really hard.
Really hard.
Wait, am I the only one??
Something tells me no.
I'm trying to picture how it would have gone over had someone sat me down and said,
"Look. I know you're excited. You're caressing all those cute and cuddly tiny clothes and soft blankets, waiting for the most adorable creature you've ever laid eyes on to arrive. You probably don't want to hear this right now, but here goes. Life is about to take a drastic turn for you. A huge, almost unbearable at times, difficult turn. Changes are about to occur with the creation and raising of this new person in your life. You're going to do some serious soul-searching. You will lose your sanity at times. You will feel like crawling into a hole at times, some often feel like ending it all at least a few times. You will cry at the endless cycle of selfless and tedious chores. You will be depressed to find all of the simple pleasures you once enjoyed seemingly lost for good. You will lose yourself. You will just plain go nuts. Just brace yourself."
Someone please slap her!!
Nobody talks about the hard stuff and until you're walking through difficulty and then they chime in, "Oh, I've been there!"
Should they?
Do you tell future mothers what they're getting into, or just let them figure it out for themselves?
Survey says, let them figure it out.
I'm quite tempted to delete all that I just wrote for this very reason. There's no reason to walk into the biggest moment of your life with fear and anxiety, right? So just so you won't be scared and decide never to have kids, I'm going to take a deep breath and finish with the inevitable flip side of the coin. The good stuff.
Because the truth is...becoming a mother is a wonderful learning process. It's different for everyone, thank God. God's grace provides a huge learning curve. All of the mothers out there whom you know will be right there for you when you need them if you ask. Have you ever met a mother not chomping at the bit to offer advice? More importantly, God is right there with you every step of the way. I don't have to hide all of the scary and seemingly intolerable from my friends and family. I can express it. I have my God to lean on. I have friends and family. I have no reason to fear. And neither do you. Inevitably, becoming a mother is one of the most awe-inspiring experiences ever in my life. It will turn you inside out, cause all of your desires and theories and emotions and practices in life to come into question. But it will be part of your salvation. Your Aunt Jenny reminds me of this a lot. Nothing shapes you quite like motherhood. You will find out things about yourself that you never wanted to know, but once you know them, you are so glad you do. And what's more, you will have a deeper understanding of the love of the Father. His pure, fierce, self-sacrificing love that compares with no other. Parenting gives us a glimpse. What could be more wonderful than that?
It's simultaneous pain and beauty.
Those without Christ run dangerously on their own fumes. They conjure up all the strength they can, which is what I am tempted to do when I'm not allowing Christ to abide in my heart like I should. But when He is at home there, I find my strength renewed, my creativity flowing, and my peace like a river. I don't have to know it all or, thankfully, do it all. Those without Christ indwelling are performance-driven and guilt-driven. I have found that to be at home with Him is to be at peace among the madness, and reliant on Him for this huge responsibility He has so graciously endowed us with.
I LOVE being a mom. Even on the hard days, it's an undying passion of mine. It means I get to nurture, and train, and discipline, and play, and love, and learn, and laugh with my two precious treasures from heaven.
To God be the glory and to Him be praise, for I am so thankful for this gift of motherhood.
Dear Sadie.
"women will be saved through childbearing--if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety." 1 Timothy 2:15
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