Worth Your Time: mommy articles

I've been saving up articles that I've read recently that have impacted me. While I don't necessarily agree with 100% of everything (nor do I expect you to!)...they made me think and challenged the way I do things. And that's always a good thing. 


On motherhood as a mission field:

It is easy to think you have a heart for orphans on the other side of the world, but if you spend your time at home resenting the imposition your children are on you, you do not. You cannot have a heart for the gospel and a fussiness about your life at the same time. You will never make any difference there if you cannot be at peace here. You cannot have a heart for missions, but not for the people around you. A true love of the gospel overflows and overpowers. It will be in everything you do, however drab, however simple, however repetitive.

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On not feeling bad if you don't enjoy your kids all the time:
I know that this message is right and good. But as 2011 closes, I have finally allowed myself to admit that it just doesn’t work for me. It bugs me. This CARPE DIEM message makes me paranoid and panicky. Especially during this phase of my life – while I’m raising young kids. Being told, in a million different ways to CARPE DIEM makes me worry that if I’m not in a constant state of intense gratitude and ecstasy, I’m doing something wrong.

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On getting rid of the "Is she a good baby? question"
Sometimes a teacher or other adult will praise a child saying, “I hardly knew he was there!”  Is this praise?!  If someone else hardly knew I was there, I’d begin to wonder why I was being such a wall flower.  Does anyone hope their son or daughter will grow up to be a silent, passive watcher of life, or do we want our children to be vibrant, energetic and communicative adults?  If we want the latter in adulthood, it makes sense to accept these qualities in our babies and young children.


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And this one, written by a dad, but something this mom needed to remember. On the sanctity of human life. All human life.
We—as humans—feel ill equipped to handle life-altering uncertainty. If we could see the future, we’d do everything we could to keep things safe. Yet it also seems that when we can control the future, we don’t do well. In the case of prenatal diagnosis, when we catch a glimpse of the predicted future, nine out of ten times we choose not to permit the adventure of life with a Down syndrome child! We buy into the utopian lie that we know what’s best for ourselves and for this world. 


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On spreading rather than squelching hope to new parents.
“You guys do good work!” I comment. The parents beam with pride, but the weariness in their eyes lets me know that they are all still in the process of getting to know each other. The lady behind the couple glances at the stroller as well, and asks. “Is this your first?” They nod proudly.  ”Just wait…” she snorts, and then follows with a comment about unruly teenagers.


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