A Weary Mom Rejoices

Some days I daydream about wrapping my kids in bubble wrap and hiding them away in a closet somewhere until they’re 25 and they can make good, godly decisions without having been influenced by this world. Just walking into certain clothing stores for teenagers reminds me that they are growing up in hostile territory, in a culture that celebrates everything that Jesus taught would kill them. This world has a pointed way of working overtime to influence our kids. It’s enough to make Christian parents despair.

But on days like today when I feel a little bit panicked about the state of this world, when I wonder how much further things can go, when I worry that my children will fall for every lie that this culture has to offer them, I (eventually) stop. I turn to that squirmy feeling in the pit of my stomach and I remind it that the Holy Spirit of God is still enough.

We can become so overwhelmed with all the shocking and horrific news that points to all that’s wrong with this world that we forget that God is as fully in control as He ever was. We think we need to scheme and plan and isolate our kids, and we lock them away like little hermits. Or we bury our heads in the sand and pretend like our kids are immune to sin, telling ourselves that the world isn’t what it actually is.

And then every once in awhile, like tonight, when I was wondering if we should move to a compound someplace and hide from the evils of this world, the Holy Spirit ministers to me. Wisely, He reminds me that we don’t escape evil by hiding from the world because it lives in all of us. We are all wicked people who are capable of all kinds of atrocities. Even my precious children have hearts bent toward sin. Then He brings comfort. I’m reminded that Scripture teaches that when we know Christ sin no longer has dominion over us. There is no sin that the Holy Spirit can’t handle. There is no devastation or spiritual destruction or emotional pain that is too big for the power of God. This world is no match for the King of Kings.

So, once again I find myself in a familiar spot: remembering that I can’t fix everything. In fact, I can’t fix most things. And it’s in this place that I learn a little bit more about relying on God. Trusting Him with my children is surprisingly difficult sometimes because I want to act and do and work and strive and take over. But then I get completely overwhelmed with this job, which is entirely too big for little old me to take on. And in that golden moment I remember that all I really have to do is sit back and rest in the arms of my good, good God. He is trustworthy when this world is not. He is powerful, and I am oh so weak. He is big enough to rescue my children, and I am not.

All of these truths the Holy Spirit whispers to a tired mama on an ordinary Tuesday. In the glow of the Christmas tree tonight, the Prince of Peace seems more real than ever. A thrill of hope, a weary mom rejoices. Because her God is sufficient. He always has been, and He always will be.