Hand’s up if it feels like parenting is monumentally overwhelming at times. Yeah, me too. Honestly, there are so many wonderful times and huge rewards, but there is serious struggle too. We all think we’ve got it together and we know what we are doing…until we don’t.
Say it with me now: I’m not fine. Lord, I NEED you! Every hour I need you. When I became a Mom that “every hour” part hit home. I mean EVERY HOUR, LORD! Day and night. Man oh man…Let’s take that first step of learning how to rest in the Lord.
What’s the first step anyway? Isn’t the pleading and negotiation enough? Doesn’t God know I’m breaking here?
He Does Know And He Cares Deeply.
Of course he does! In fact, I’m sure his heart is aching for you. But the reality is, God doesn’t want to just fix it for you. That would be too easy and easy isn’t always good.
Remember the 10 lepers that Jesus healed? They received their healing on their way to the synagogue, but only ONE turned back to thank Jesus. One. The rest carried on their way. Maybe they thought turning around would extend their travel time far too long. Or hey! Maybe they were just so thrilled for the opportunity to be near people again and speak to those they had been missing. Whatever it was, It’s not difficult to act like the 9 who forgot/ didn’t consider/ or didn’t think it necessary to thank Jesus. The point is: easy isn’t always good.
God Wants You To Be An Active Participant On Your Journey To Salvation.
It’s so human to want a simple fix! I’m guilty of it all the time. And you know what? Jesus knows…he knows it all. The pain, the fear, the overwhelm, ALL THE THINGS. He knows intimately what you go through on a daily basis and he doesn’t judge you the way that you judge you. Praise The Lord for that! Instead He say’s “Let me help you. Let’s do this together.”
The First Step Is Intentionaly Asking The Lord To Walk Alongside You On This Journey.
Spoiler: He is already. I think it’s easy to forget that in the hustle and bustle.
However, we need to work at being consciously aware of His presence throughout the day…hour by hour. There is also something powerful about inviting someone as opposed to just knowing they will come.
It makes me think of my neighbor. She’s a good friend of ours and we enjoy having her over for lunches and dinners. Most of the time, the kids ask her over just a few minutes prior. Well, for the first couple of years, she always said a happy “yes”. But suddenly there came a time that she started to decline the offer from them.
Then one day I overheard her tell one of my kids, “I’d really like an invitation from your Mom.” huh….I never thought about it before but she wanted a personal invitation. A kind of solidification of our friendship and my desire for her to join us. I think we’re all a bit that way.
Let’s make a point to personally invite Jesus on the journey…not for his sake, but ours. You know He’s going to say yes…
Mary – Mom Revival
Make Quiet Prayer Time A Priority.
Set aside a time to just be quiet with the Lord. It doesn’t have to be in a church. It doesn’t have to be fancy. It doesn’t have to be all alone. It does need to happen. I tell you what, Jesus really speaks in the silence of the heart. If you choose not to make time for quiet, you’ll never hear it. 1 Kings 19:11-13 Says:
He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
1 Kings 19:11-13
So, there you go….the Lord was in the sound of “sheer silence”. That’s probably impossible in a home with children, but then again NOTHING shall be impossible for God. Am I right?
None-the-less, make a point to spend at least 5 minutes in prayerful silence on a daily basis. You will notice when you haven’t done it and you will know the graces you receive when you do!
I like to just lay down for five minutes (warning the kids that I need 5 minutes of “quiet” if they are around). Then I ask Jesus what he wants me to know today. I usually just speak in my heart to the Lord about my frustrations, concerns, and joys. Then, for the remainder of the time I just sit quietly and listen.
At the end, I remind myself how much I love those wonderful exhausting blessings he gave me and that God chose me for them. I end with a plea to Blessed Mother for some feminine genius and motherly grace and pray a Hail Mary.
Y’all, that is my biggest tip for you to begin learning to rest in the Lord once more and to allow him to restore your heart. I need it as desperately as you. We’re on this journey together.
I used to do this daily and then I stopped. It’s been a long time that I have made this a priority. Actually resting with the Lord. Of course I pray at other moments. But intentionally sitting in quiet to just listen is different, powerful, and transformative. I believe it’s necessary. So, let’s do this together…this week let’s work to build this important habit into our daily lives.
The Mom Revival Plea?
If you’re anything like me, then you can relate to the plea of this verse from Psalm 51:
Restore to me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.
Psalm 51:12
Psalm 51 is actually a psalm of repentance from David. After committing adultery, he pleads to God to purify him. If you dive deep into this psalm, you’ll discover that David is asking God to not only to have mercy on him and cleanse him from his sins, but to actually fix the emotional, psychological, and social consequences of sin.
I find that so profound. To realize that, sin isn’t just a past issue to walk away from and strive to avoid, but actually a very real burden that continues to affect our lives moving forward. Mercy + healing. We need both to move forward in the light of salvation.
Seriously though, isn’t this exactly what we need here? No, we may not be finding ourselves in David’s shoes, but in some way, we can relate. We all have those sins we just have trouble kickin and we all have those wounds that need healing. Man…
Psalm 51 also asks for the grace to be near to God spiritually. To live in the spirit. That, my friends, is what this is all about. This is why I started Mom Revival…to learn to live with God in the spirit. To be intimately connected to the Lord. To transform our hearts in Christ Jesus.
When you’re spending some ME + JESUS time this week, start your prayer with this verse. Or maybe just begin your day with it. It’s going to be our focus. We’re going to begin right here and see where the Lord takes us. We are asking, and I guarentee, He’s going to answer big time.
The bottom line is, the Lord knows all the things and when we give him an opportunity to speak life into our hearts, then he will. He’s not going to dilly-dally….He’s going to jump right into healing those broken, dark, empty places that we are afraid of. Sometimes, it’s in subtle ways that we do not understand, but the Lord’s ways are not our ways. So, trust him. Say yes to those little things.
If you’re in need of prayer, please contact me with this form or at mary@momrevival.com. I would love to pray for you and I will also put your intention on our site for all readers to pray for you as well.
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Until next time, keep doing your thing, Mama. God bless you!
