It's not easy being a child these days.
I listen to them talking around tables, gathered in groups at restaurants; watch their characterization on television shows and movies. I wonder if we understand as well as we think we do what it's really like to grow up during this season. Sometimes it seems that so much has changed, today's children live in a different world than the one I grew up in. The hurried, harried pace of it all wearies me as a mother, and I can only imagine its effect on this generation which has known nothing else.
As the world's raging current rushes past our homes, what happens inside?
Are we creating spaces of peace for our children? When they come to us with the hard questions about the difficult things in life, do we have real answers for them? Are we well-equipped to buffer the young ones from the onslaught of the world even as we prepare them to make their way--and even overcome-- in it?
They say the more things change, the more they stay the same. And I do believe this is true when we think about what our children really need from us as mothers.
They don't need sweet platitudes of faith that will momentarily placate their emotions. They need the authentic strength that comes from the true foundation of a biblical worlveiw and a proper understanding of the real Christ who is worthy of their worship. They need an unwavering, internal moral and spiritual compass that will help them weather today's storms and tomorrow's and will guide them for the rest of their lives. They also need to see what real faith looks like when lived day in, day out; so they will have a pattern to follow.
The process of providing such gifts to my children is what I've come to think of as the ministry of motherhood. I believe it's central to the calling of anyone God has privileged to bring children into this world.
If you are a mother, it's your ministry too." ~from The Ministry of Motherhood
Part of what's so difficult is that this same current carries us mamas along with it. Determining to live with grace and faith, to walk in integrity, to slow down--even to enjoy summer! -- will require a line in the sand. We must own our lives! We have to decide what's most important, or culture will be happy to do that job for us.
I so pray my words here are a blessing and encouragement to you in this incredibly important, great work of motherhood. This week, I'm giving away four prizes--bundles of a few of my books; The Ministry of Motherhood, Own Your Life, and The Lifegiving Home! Enter by answering this question below in the comments ...
How do you feel about the ministry of motherhood?