Encouragement For You, Mom…
I have been noticing lately how so many of my mom friends and acquaintances are in need of encouragement. We often work tirelessly for our families and are not encouraged as much as we need to be! I wrote this and shared it with my MOPS group at our meeting Tuesday… I thought some of you might need to hear it, too!
Encouragement for You, Mom!
To the mom who is…
Feeling lonely… look around, there are women here who understand what you’re going through.
Exhausted… ask for help, you’ll get through it!
Feeling unloved… your children certainly love you. And God loves you with an everlasting love.
Doubting herself… trust your instincts! God chose you as the mother for your kids, and He doesn’t make mistakes!
Grieving… reach out to others and look to God for comfort.
Feeling like nothing you do matters… remember that motherhood is a sacred trust from God. What you’re doing matters – to your kids and to Him.
Overwhelmed… take it one day at a time. You can do it!
Feeling like a failure… being a mom is a tough job with no instruction manual. Give yourself a break! Tomorrow is a new day.
Unappreciated… I say thank you to you, for your kids and husband. You ARE making a difference. Better moms make a better world.
And Thank God that He is always with us, noticing what we’re doing, and is ready to encourage us when we turn to Him! Read these following Bible verses… God’s encouragement to us!
To the mom who is…
Feeling lonely… Deuteronomy 31:8 “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
Exhausted… Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Feeling unloved… Psalm 36:5 “Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.”
Doubting herself… Isaiah 40:11 “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”
Grieving… Psalm 30:5 “…weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”
Feeling like nothing you do matters… Psalm 138:8 “The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands.”
Overwhelmed… 1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
Feeling like a failure… Lamentations 3:22-23 “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Unappreciated… Isaiah 49:4 “But I said, “I have labored to no purpose; I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing. Yet what is due me is in the LORD’s hand, and my reward is with my God.”
What a privilege…
I know, I know, I missed my Tuesday tip. Oh well. I had more important things going on!
Last night was our last MOPS meeting of the year and it was so great. I am so grateful to my steering team, who are so dedicated and who put so much work into making everything look fabulous and go smoothly. I am grateful to our mentors who faithfully pray for all the moms, and also for me and our steering team. I am grateful for our moppets volunteers who faithfully give of their time to watch children, so that “every” mom has the opportunity to come to MOPS.
Last night I shared with the moms about my own ups and downs in the adventure of mothering. What a privilege to be a MOPS coordinator! I feel like I have a front-row seat to see how God is working in these mom’s lives. He nudged me several months ago and let me know that I needed to share my story. He gave me the words. I feel privileged and blessed to have been used by Him. Maybe I’ll even post at some point a (shorter) version of what I shared with the moms.
But right now, I just want to be praising Him for His presence, His provision, and the work He is doing in all of our MOPS moms.
Psalm 138:8 “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me – your love, Oh Lord, endures forever.”
Survival Mode
I just found a brilliant article at the MOPS website. And in reading it, I realized that I am in mommy survival mode. All. The. Time.
In other words, I tend to do what I can just to make it through the day. Not really enjoying it, but just surviving. Are you stuck in this mode, too? I think when it comes down to it, it’s not really my circumstances, it’s just my attitude.
If that’s where you’re at, read this article.
Then pick one of those things that you’ll do this week in order to enjoy life instead of surviving it.
Last night our kids were watching Veggie Tales “The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything”. One of the characters asked the other, “You have a good life, don’t you?” and the other character replied, “Yes, it was good on that one day from about 2 to 2:30.”
I don’t want to live like this. I want to enjoy what God has blessed me with. And I’m starting today!
A little bible study, anyone?
Our MOPS theme this year is called the Adventures of Mothering, and the theme verse is Ephesians 3:18.
Our first MOPS meeting is a week from today, and in preparation God has laid it on my heart to read and meditate on this verse every day this week.
Ephesians 3:14-21
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
I thought maybe you might like to join with me in meditating on this verse this week (especially my MOPS friends!). Please be sure to come back and comment on what you’re learning from this verse.
Thanks, friends!
TTAH Tuesday – Find a MOPS group near you!
If you are a mother of preschoolers (infancy up to kindergarten), then this tip is for you.
I haven’t posted much about MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers), but I want to today because it is an awesome lifeline for moms in the early years of mothering.
Becoming a mother changes your life – and that’s an understatement. Often moms can feel isolated, lonely, confused, and feeling like they don’t have any idea how to raise this sweet little child that has come into their lives.
That’s where MOPS comes in. MOPS is a place for moms to meet other moms in the same stage of parenting. A place where you can connect. A place to find help. A place simply to be able to eat a snack without having to share or be interrupted by your little one.
Many groups operate differently, but ours incorporates speakers, crafts, food, and time to chat with other moms. All while your precious children are having fun and being well-cared-for by volunteers from our church.
Sound good?
Here’s a link to the MOPS International website, where you can learn more about MOPS and you can also search to see if there is a group near you. I’m praying you find one and that you make a point of attending at least once or twice to try it out.
(P.S. – if you are not used to leaving your child with someone else, please try it out anyways! Both you AND your child need the experience! I would suggest not giving up after the first meeting – it can take some time for your child to get used to being away from you. But stick with it – it’s the first step of “letting go” – which is what ALL of us moms will have to do eventually!)
TTAH Tuesday – “Meet me in the bathroom”
Do you have a child that you struggle to discipline? One that pushes all your buttons? Do you feel like discipline escalates into a battle? Do you have a hard time controlling your own anger?
If so, then this tip is for you. I learned this at a MOPS convention from speaker and author Lisa Whelchel.
I guess I should state the obvious… to begin with, you should have set rules and expectations for behavior that your child has been told and understands. Then when your child misbehaves, use this technique. Simply tell them to “meet you in the bathroom.” The location could actually be anywhere, but it needs to be a place that isn’t any fun.
With my oldest daughter, I was finding that misbehavior and discipline were becoming battles. Battles of ever-increasing volume, anger, and bad behavior (in all honesty, from both of us). I started to use this technique and it was a huge help. First off, it allowed us both time to cool off. For her, I use it not as a time-out (we don’t even call it that) but instead a time to think about what just happened and calm down.
I use the time to: calm down (discussion, and discipline, should not happen when I’m angry). I pray, asking God to give me wisdom about how to constructively deal with the situation. I make sure that she has calmed down as well – no discussion will take place until she has stopped any yelling, whining, etc. Then, I go to her and ask some questions… What did you do that was wrong? Why was it wrong? How can you do better next time?
This usually leads to a good conversation and then possibly further discipline if necessary. But it is always better than dealing with misbehavior on the spur-of-the-moment when tempers are flaring.
Try this at home and let me know if it works for you, too!!
