The Ministry of Motherhood

The last 12 months have been some of the toughest I've had to face, possibly ever.  I knew last August when we left the full time ministry position my husband was serving, that change was inevitable.  To the depth, I had no idea.  Through much prayer and time in God's Holy Word, Hebrews 11:6 continued to come up.

And it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

We left knowing that God would provide for our family of five.  How, was a different story (for another time possibly).  Here I sit, nearly a year later.  My husband is serving as the lead pastor of a local fellowship. Change has been evident in our lives.  We have and are continuing to learn to live once again in a rural community.  We're learning still what it means to sincerely seek Christ in the areas of marriage, family and ministry.

Yesterday, as I was reading in Luke 19, I came across the passage in scripture where it talks about Jesus entering Jerusalem.  Reading it, I paused to see that before Jesus came into Jerusalem, while he was still approaching the city, he began to weep.

⁴² “How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. ⁴⁴ They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not accept your opportunity for salvation.”

To visualize my Lord weeping over a people.  Tears still come to my eyes as I think about it.  He was so moved with compassion for these people.  People who had already rejected him.  Oh how he longed for them to have accepted the way to salvation, the way to peace.

When we left Birmingham, our oldest son was almost 4 years old.  He didn't understand why we had to leave.  Instead of trying to make a 4 year old comprehend what even as an adult can be difficult, we just simply told him that God had another people for us to love.  And that in time, God would show us those people.  Change.  Change of scenery, change of people, change of heart.  As I read this passage again and again, I asked,

"Has Christ's love so filled me for a people, that I've sincerely wept for their salvation?"

As I thought about this question all day yesterday, I kept asking myself what people has He sent me to love?  Mind you, not only did my husband surrender to the ministry of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I did also.  So for me to not be as involved in the ministry as he is, is often frustrating.  So, I kept asking, what people, Lord? The answer, your children, Naomi.



I must confess.  I haven't spent near the time playing with my kids as I have telling them to go play.  I haven't rocked my babies to sleep at night as often as I fuss for them to go to bed.  Today, yet another change has occurred in the Stephens' household.  The change from general church ministry to the ministry of motherhood.  I have a ministry right under my roof.  A people I'm to be so filled with the love of Christ for that I weep over their salvation, that I disciple them daily and I teach them all that Christ has taught me through His Word.  Though I have the same responsibility to others, my boys come first.

What people have you been so filled with the love of Christ for that you weep over their salvation?  How has the ministry of motherhood changed your relationship with Christ and with your children?

 

Raising Opie in a Magic Mike World

***Various bloggers have hit on the topics of "Magic Mike" and "Fifty Shades of Grey".  This is not a debate or a bashing session.  It's the observation from this mother.***

Being a mom is one of the most, if not THE most, challenging and rewarding jobs I've ever held.  It comes with its daily ups and downs.  As I type, my two year old is hanging around my neck, loudly singing in my ear.  Moments like these can never be replaced or remade.  It is my joy to raise boys.  They are fun, loud, lively boys who enjoy wrestling, running and being outdoors.

This week we saw the passing of a beloved actor, Andy Griffith. I can remember watching reruns of The Andy Griffith Show as a child (up into my adulthood).   It was a wholesome show that depicted the adventures of a father raising his young son, teaching him the lessons needed to be a self-sufficient adult with good moral character.  I've often wondered how we've gone from one extreme to the other.  How do I raise my sons in an Opie fashion?

Since the release of Magic Mike, I've been disheartened by the number of "Christian" women who've gone to see this movie.  As a believer, wife and mother of boys, I've been sick thinking about what my boys see me approve and disapprove.  This movie (and the book Fifty Shades of Grey) have made me stop and think.  How can my husband and I raise our boys in such a way that they are not the object of lust, selfish desires and ingratitude? Here are a few of my thoughts.

The first thing my boys need to see is that I as their mother Respect their father.  I respect him as a man, my husband, my lover, my friend and my helpmate, just to name a few.

So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.  ~Ephesians 5:33

It is way easy for us, as women, to become discouraged because our husbands aren't as romantic like when we were dating. They leave their dirty socks laying around the house or don't always help with the household chores.  We look for ways to not have to show them respect.  Scripture is clear in that we are to respect our husbands (this doesn't mean we worship them).  Respect them with our words, actions, with what we see and what we say.  Frankly, none of us want our husbands viewing pornography.  We feel demeaned by it.  How is watching a movie or reading a book like mentioned above not the same?  Our fantasies are telling our husbands we want someone they can't be.  It's time to check our motives.

Two, I need my boys to see that I as a woman Respect myself.  That I do not condemn myself by what I approve.

Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others. ~ 1 Corinthians 10:24

They need to see me as consistently the same.  To understand that moral character is important.  Even more important is a personal relationship with Christ.  My boys need to see what it looks like for a woman to respect herself so they know what to look for in their future wives.  I want them to be able to spot a woman who is comfortable in her relationship with Christ and has good moral character.  A woman uncompromising in her faith and femininity.  I want them to see it first in me.

Three, I need my boys to see that they can Respect themselves.  I want them to understand there is a huge difference between love and lust.  The one thing that made my skin crawl was the thought of women (any but especially my age and older) thinking of my sons as objects of their lust-filled fantasies.  I want my boys to learn to conduct themselves in such a manner that earns the respect of all people and is not paid for with single bills by women of all ages.  Respect is earned, not freely given and cannot be bought.  They may not have everything handed to them on a platter.  They will have to work for things they want like video game systems or a car because I don't want them to grow up with a sense of entitlement and no work ethic.  I want them to respect themselves and not regret who they are and will become.
What are you showing your children by what you approve?  How are you instilling a respect for self and others in your child?

 

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All you boy moms, check out what's going on over at The MOB Society.