Back in the fall, a friend invited me to join she and some other ladies for a weekly Bible study together. The group I had been meeting with last year was doing something I'd done before and I decided to join this new group. The women in the group are all other cross-cultural workers who are really sweet and really precious and really YOUNG. I mean they aren't that much younger than me, I guess, but they feel young to me. All of them are either pregnant or have had a baby in the last 18 months. So the things that are filling their days are similar, but different, than my days. And when I listen to them share I have this weird blend of nostalgia and compassion for their current seasons of life. I love them all, even if they make me feel a little bit like I should be applying for my AARP membership. And even if my tongue is sometimes sore from all the times I bite it instead of saying "It goes so fast, enjoy it!" Because let's be honest, that doesn't help ANY of us, does it? And really, those 55 hour long days of the toddler years do.not.go.fast!
Anyway, we started off the school year with a Jen Wilkins study of 1 Peter, which I highly recommend. It was my first Jen Wilkins study and I loved it because 90% of the study focused on what the Bible actually had to say, rather than the author's commentary on what the Bible had to say, which I appreciated.
So, we finished that study a few weeks before Christmas and decided to do something lighter over the holidays, especially as many of us were traveling or having guests. We thought we'd read a book together. After perusing several options, we chose Missional Motherhood, by Gloria Furman. The subtitle was, "The Everyday Ministry of Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God." It sounded good to me. I was thinking it would be a bit of a light read with some encouraging tips for mothering in a Christ-Centered way. I've read at least a dozen Christian mommy books through the years. I appreciate the tips I pick up and the encouragement I get and it had been a while since I'd read one. So, I ordered my $11 Amazon copy and prepared for my light reading. Which is NOT what I got. I got systematic theology 101, in light of motherhood.
To be honest, I've had a love-hate relationship with the book. It is not what I signed up for- at all! I know I would not have finished it if it hadn't been a group discussion book because I wanted some feel good fluff. But, I have finished it and I am so glad I did. The last few chapters have been really rich and encouraging for me. They have helped me to see my ministry as a mother from a very Biblical perspective. Today, I read something that led me to want to share with you from where I am in life these days.
When we travel to the States, one of the most common questions we get is "Do you like where you live?" or "So, you must really like it over there or you wouldn't go back, right?" We never know how to answer those questions. If you were to google something like "least developed countries in the world" or "lowest life expectancy age" or "worst countries for women's rights" you would find our current home in the top five for all of those lists and many other lists that are equally as unfortunate. It is a hard place for anyone to live and honestly, it is not a place that is glamourous or fun in its own right. It just isn't. We don't live here because we love it. We live here because God has given us a heart for these people and we love Him. We know, that for this season of our life, it is the only place we can invest and be walking in obedience. God gives us the grace to stay and invest and persevere every single day. We get enough for that day, which is all we need.
My point in saying this is not to make myself sound like a martyr or a super hero. I can assure you no one is less qualified to wear those titles than me. So, if you're carrying around any sort of false belief that missionaries are in a different league than the average person, please drown and bury that falsehood immediately. The vast majority of us are knee-deep in sin struggles, depending on daily grace, just like you... we just don't get to eat as many Doritoes and Dr. Peppers after we lose it with our kids or use harsh words with our spouses!
The truth is, if you are a Christ follower, you've been called to do your "whatever" to the glory of God, just like I have. l am not sure what your whatever might be...showing love to a difficult neighbor, sticking in a marriage that isn't full of fun and fluff these days, parenting a child whose needs are overwhelming, working a 40 hour a week job when you really just want to be a full-time mommy (or vice versa- I have been there!), etc., etc., etc. You can rest assured that if you have breath in your lungs, God has work for you to do right where he has you. You and I can be on mission in the everydays and the ordinaries. Though our geography is different, our calling is the same. If you are a follower of Christ, then we should both be trying to make disciples and share the love of Christ in every circle of influence that God has given us for this season. Which is easier to do some days than others.
So today, as I was reading in my "mommy book," I came across these words, which I found encouraging. Words that I guess some of you might benefit from reading too. So here they are, straight from page 183 of Missional Motherhood, by Gloria Furman.
"Friends and fellow mothering women, because King Jesus is on this throne, subduing all his enemies and supplying everything we need for life and godliness as we go about the mission he gave us, we truly have no need to fear. We can instead gladly embrace weakness, sickness, lots of children, a few children, lots of needy people in our lives, unemployment, financial strain, and pain, knowing that he is up to way more and way better things than we can imagine. We can do things that we think are less fulfilling to us, such as volunteer in the church nursery, simply because that's that the church needs and because Jesus equipped us to serve him and build up his body. ... Because Jesus is coming back, and he is giving us tastes of his resurrection life now, we can serve like he served in the contexts he sends us. We can go places we can't imagine will ever make us happy, because we don't need those places to make us happy. Jesus makes us happy. There is no place we could sojourn in our Father's world where he who ways he is the resurrection and the life cannot satisfy us according to his word."
Wow, there you go friends. We can do it. Whatever our "whatevers" are, by his grace, we can do it. He can and will equip us. I can testify to his grace upon grace to do things you never imagined yourself capable of doing.
For the record, if anyone is looking for a good read, now that I've wrestled through it, I would recommend you read Missional Motherhood. Just maybe not for your relaxing beach read!
