Created by Laura B. Nelson in Canva. All rights reserved.[/caption]
I hope you can’t relate to feeling overwhelmed and over-scheduled. I hope you can’t imagine what it feels like to be insecure about being a mom and think you’re the only one who doesn’t know what they're doing. I hope you have no idea what I mean when I talk about not feeling like you measure up. When I talk about how everyone else’s houses, yards, cars, kids, and husbands seem to have it all in order like they just popped out of a magazine spread from a family lifestyle magazine, I hope you think I’m way off base. And I really, really hope that you can’t relate when I talk about not having time to pray and feeling spiritually malnourished. Really, I hope you can’t relate to any of this.
But, chances are, you can.
It’s the best-kept secret of motherhood that everyone feels overwhelmed from time to time (or maybe even all the time) and that everyone thinks everyone else has things under control and an easier life than you do. But the reality is, we all struggle. Some of us struggle all the time. Others struggle from time to time. But all of us struggle.
So, what if we just all admitted it to ourselves and to each other that being a mom is hard and that our lives aren’t in balance? What would happen? Would the world end in one long, judgmental collective gasp? I doubt it. In fact, I think many of us would breathe a sigh of relief to know that we’re not alone and that there’s nothing “wrong” with us.
Maybe, just maybe, we could ask for help. I know, crazy, right? Maybe that help might come from your husband, a friend, a stranger, a pastor, or a healthcare professional. It really doesn’t matter where the help comes from.
Maybe we could learn to say “No.” Maybe we could rise up in a maternal revolution and say no to unrealistic expectations for ourselves and our kids. Maybe we could say no to noise for 10 minutes a day just to have some time with the Lord. Maybe we could say no to more volunteer roles or activities for our kids so that we can have time to just be with our families or have a date night with our husbands.
Maybe we could rebuild our relationship with God. Slowly, one moment at a time, we could invite Him back into our lives. Maybe it’s just a quick mental shout-out to acknowledge that He’s with us. Maybe it’s a morning prayer or an evening prayer before bed. Oooo ... maybe it’s both! Wouldn’t that be great?
Wouldn’t it be great if we could remember that God loves us as we are and not because we’re the president of the PTA? Wouldn’t it be great to know that we don’t have pretend with Him because He knows all about us and still loves us despite His insider knowledge? Wouldn’t it be great to know that we can become great saints even if we’re not perfect?
If you can’t relate to this, that’s fine. Thanks for reading. You may go now. But, before you go, just remember -- there are a LOT of moms that can relate to this article. And they would really appreciate your help (since you’ve got it all together …)
Copyright 2018 Laura B Nelson
About the Author
.png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)"){kind=logo}
Comments