Mom Heart Moments #314

God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints.

ALL FAMILIES WILL TRAVEL INTO the eye of a life storm at some point. It is not evidence of a bad family, but the reality of a fallen world, with rebellion and brokenness evident in every dark cloud.

It is not the grand, noble accomplishments that are most profoundly valuable to God, but the unnoticed, invisible moments of being faithful and courageous when no one else is looking that become the jewels of our faith in the eyes of God.

Accepting a loud, boisterous child and seeking to be patient and gentle over and over again when feelings threaten to erupt into frustration and anger. Working beyond exhaustion and getting up in the middle of the night, again, for a sick child. Enduring the heavy burdens and tests of marriage. Cleaning up messes again and again and again. Making one more homemade meal and drawing the family circle together to celebrate life when a nap seemed more desirable. Having one more devotional in the midst of wiggly, distracted children, and believing that somehow eternity is entering their hearts . . .

These and more are the noble and valiant works of motherhood. I can see the results of this now in the lives of my children. While I worried the instability of our family life would ruin them or my flaws would harm them, the Holy Spirit was making them strong, showing them how to exercise muscles of faith in dark situations.

Somehow the life of God and the strength He gave in the face of powerful winds of temptation and fear became, in my children, a work of heart that gave foundations of faith, for it was those storms that prepared them to be strong.

Take courage today, sweet, tired mama. Your labor is not in vain, but it is the very heart of your best work for all of eternity.