Hello Weary Mama...

The photo is From October 12, 2017

What God put on my heart when I saw the photo on October 12, 2022

Hello friend,

I came across this photo as I was just looking through memories. I’m not sure what you see, but what I see is a very exhausted mama. She looks weary and tired. She looks like there’s not enough coffee in that cup (that’s most likely cold) to give her the strength she needs for that day. Desperately hoping that what the cup says on the outside is in fact true, the fuel for her day and the challenges it holds.

At this moment I would tell her... to not grow weary in doing good. Don’t grow weary in getting up every hour with your newborn, the sleepless nights with sick kids who can only sleep on your chest, constantly getting snacks, and keeping the kids alive, changing the endless demand of diapers. Don’t grow weary in potty training (as you yell at your two-year-old to run to the bathroom because he had another accident...only to see the poop falling out of his underwear. Yeah, that backfired on me!). Don't grow weary in doing_____ you fill in your personal struggle or challenge with motherhood. For me, it was having an almost 3-year-old and a newborn that was challenging. I was exhausted most of the time I was very sleep-deprived because Kyle and I took turns staying up for multiple hours during the night. Kyle would take the first shift as I took a nap for a few hours before he woke me up saying he was all out of milk, once again Parker was hungry. But this was only for a season. once we go into a new rhythm of trying to figure it all out, the season changed. we were faced with difficulties we had never faced before. We faced a new kind of weary we hadn't ever faced before. We were new to parenting two children. We didn't reach out and find a couple who had walked through parenting at this age.

These seasons may seem long,  but they are only for a moment. The last thing I would tell my younger self is this...God gives us grace and strength for each new day. He also gave us the Holy Spirit as a helper. He’s just waiting for us to invite him into our mess (sleepless nights, the poop flying out of the underwear onto the ground). He won’t force his way into our mess(that's not his character),  he likes to be invited, and once you fully surrender he will be that helper that you long for. No cup of coffee can do that.

To the new mom, I would encourage you to find a mom who has gone before and who is a couple steps ahead of you, ask her questions. Pick her brain on how she would have done things differently.  

To the mom who remembers the sleepless nights and being weary. Seek out the new moms, bring them a meal, and offer to clean their bathroom or kitchen. Give them grace. Tell them they are doing a great job! Encourage them to not grow weary in doing good because in a due season they WILL reap a harvest for all of their sacrifices.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Galatians 6:9