“I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.” – 2 Timothy 1:5 What an encouraging verse to meditate on as moms.
Microwaves may have made mealtime easier for modern moms, but our grandmothers never faced the pace and pressure of this Pinterest-perfect world. We juggle family, careers, marriage, church & community activities, all while trying to squeeze every last minute from the racing clock. It’s easy for moms to become discouraged.
God hears your prayers, mothers. He wants to comfort and encourage you in all walks of life, in all seasons of mothering. After all, He created this work for you.
When God put a child in your life- through adoption, birth, marriage and blended families, grand-parenting, foster mothering, or extended family- He placed on you a calling.
That’s right my sister moms, a high and holy calling is on us. And when God calls us to a task, He equips, strengthens, and sustains you in that task. His charge to us is to instill a living faith in our children, whether we dress them in adorable monogrammed outfits or not.
After all, it was not Timothy’s Instagram childhood that Paul wrote about; it was the sincere faith that Timothy’s grandmother and mother planted in him- a faith that fueled Timothy’s work in the New Testament.
Can we look at our own children and see the seeds of faith we’ve planted? Are we nurturing our family’s eternal salvation as much as we nurture their social lives? I want my children to be happy and healthy, but I want them to have a living, vibrant faith most of all.
Let us be women who support and encourage each other in our mothering journeys. Let us be women who pray for and with each other as we raise our children. Let us seek God’s face every morning, seeking His direction and comfort for every season of our lives.
Andy Stanley’s words are a powerful reminder to us, “Your greatest contribution to the kingdom of God may not be something you do but someone you raise.” With God’s help, we are raising the next generation of workers for the Kingdom. Amen!
-Dr. Shari Finkler, Carolina College of Biblical Studies English Professor