A Tribute to the Many Faces of Motherhood

Mother’s Day 2023

Unwavering devotion is a wonderful picture for motherhood. I don’t want it to add undue stress to your already tired state though. Instead I pray that it brings your rest, for the true Unwavering One is leading you. He wants to be strong when you are weak, not asking you to perform but to be. He will teach you to persevere as your love expands and becomes unwavering like His. Always though he begins with blessing.

This blessing is for the new mom with expectant eyes, for the mom who faced a miscarriage, for the mom who daily remembers an abortion, for the mom whose arms are left empty to the death of the child, for the mom whose womb remains yet barren, for the mom who has opened her heart to foster care, and for the mom whose children came through adoption. This blessing also reaches to the moms at different stages, the mom with busy toddlers, the mom with school-aged children testing their boundaries, and the mom with children leaving the nest. This blessing also belongs to the mom with a child whose rejection aches heavy, the grandmother who now finds herself raising another set of children, the mom caring for a child with an illness or special needs, the moms yet to be, and to those who know or may not know that the calling of motherhood also beckons them.

So, Dear Hearts, I and the Lord have been thinking about you and we bless you.

A Blessing for Mothering

A baby in arms a heart full
A smile that plays in the eyes
Unbelief that this one is yours and will call you mom
Blessed be the God who filled your womb
You are blessed mother, run to your strength.

A prayer sent to heaven above
A cry stifled with tears warm
What was to be
Has not come to pass
Blessed be the God who hears
You are blessed mother,
Morning, noon, and evening His ears hear your cry.

Unsteady you sit tears stream
Your heart yearning, longing
To be full just one more time
The emptiness threatens to overtake
Blessed be the God who sees
You are blessed mother,
His arms tenderly hold your broken heart.

A desert bare
A wilderness of unknown
Where is the promise of a life-giving womb?
Again confronted with a womb full
And your heart aches with longing at first
And then with desperation
Will it ever be?
Blessed be the God who knows
You are blessed mother,
For He makes known to you the path of life.

A gift given
To experience your spiritual adoption in the physical
Your heart swings open
And you embrace one whom your soul loves
For a brief moment they have found a home in you
Blessed be the God who shows how to love open handed
You are blessed mother,
He chose you from the foundation of the earth - you are His.

A family but children- just a desire
A joy to be with friends and inhale their giggles full
The beautiful souls unclaimed
Your heart couldn’t resist
The whisper, Love them
So you do and your heart almost implodes
Blessed be the God whose joy is our strength
You are blessed mother,
In His presence there is fullness of joy forever more.

The baby is on the move
The days seem to stretch
But nights are short and mornings come quickly
Frazzled, dazed, tired, hungry
Don’t numb, distract, or give in to indulgence
Blessed be the God who gives rest
You are blessed mother,
He invites you to come bathe in His rhythms of grace - Sabbath

A child vocal and strong
Curious explorer setting his own boundaries
Testing and prodding in whiny vocabulary
Your triggered-buttons pushes
A sigh of exasperation escapes
Is this even worth it?
Blessed be the God who shepherds
You are blessed mother,
As you guide your child, so as a lamb your Heavenly Father guides you to Quiet waters and restores your soul.

The long days turn to short years
And you look up and the child is grown
Where has the time gone?
Could it be time to completely let go and let fly?
Blessed be the God who bids us follow
You are blessed mother,
For the same God who calls you to follow Him, calls also your child.

Anger, resentment, rejection
Taking, withholding
Longing for a small piece - if even that
The longing of a sweet blossoming of friendship as you both grew up
Still just a longing
Blessed be the God who intercedes
You are blessed mother,
For you have an advocate who day and night intercedes for you and your son at the right hand of the Father.

Your grandchildren are a crown
But you did not anticipate their care
They have burrowed deep in your heart
Life is different then imagined
Though rich and full of joy
Blessed be the God who renews your strength
Your are blessed mother,
For they who wait for the Lord shall run and not be weary.

Fear grips your heart
Disease, incurable, not sure - more tests
This babe was supposed to be whole and healthy
Your heart pounds
No control
Only trust
Blessed be the God who heals
You are blessed mother,
For He gave his only Son by whose stripes we are healed.

The refinement of motherhood
Is not exclusive
It draws and attracts
The giving of ourselves
The unveiling of our souls to each other
Spiritual motherhood a calling
Strong resilient and needed
Look around and take them in
The ones placed within your boundaries on purpose
Blessed be God who sets our times and spaces
You are blessed spiritual mother,
For He has caused your boundaries to fall in pleasant places; surely you have a delightful inheritance.

Rejoice!
Light up in smiles
Clap, sing, dance, create
The blessings you have received
Are good and gracious
In beholding them you find more intricacies of Christ

It is His grace and kindness that leads us to repentance
In Him you have received everything you need
Blessed be the God who is pleased to reveal
You are blessed mother,
For He has made known to you the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure!

~DFD

‘The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.’

Psalm 16:6

I leave you with this quote by Gloria Furman from her book Missional Motherhood, “Mothering or nurturing is not just a calling for women who have biological or adopted children. Mothering is a calling for all women. Every Christian woman is called to the spiritual motherhood of making disciples of all nations.”

Gracefully,