“When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.””
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
I thought I would be a terrific mom. I furthermore thought it would be easy. (Feel free to laugh now.) Fast forward one child with severe allergies, nasty colic, and horrible sleep patterns…and I was a mess. An absolute mess. I’ve never been a mess at anything in my life.
I seriously thought I had been mistaken about wanting to be a mom all my life, and that God was mistaken when he gave me this child.
Now, eight years (and more than a few counseling sessions) later, I can look back with gratitude - gratitude the Lord brought me out of my post-partum depression and discontentment, which back then felt impossible.
The irony is, God felt so far away and passive during my motherhood misery, but the absolutely opposite was true.
He was there in the darkness. He was working in the mess.
And isn’t it, friends, the truth of the incarnation, all over again?
He comes right into the broken.
He works good out of the broken.
He is the priest who sympathizes, the God who understands.
We don’t need to fear the broken. That is where He really works.
Easier said than done though, when it feels like everyone else has it together, and you are on the verge of a breakdown. My sweet husband used to tell me, “Everyone has something. You just can’t see it.”
If you feel today especially weak, then this Christmas Season, this moment is for you. Christ came to save the weak.
Not the strong, not the perfect, not the have-it-togethers. The needy.
May you find the courage to approach the throne of grace boldly, and to lean on your Brothers and Sisters when you need them. Immanuel - God is with us!
QUESTIONS FOR APPLICATION/ REFLECTION:
- What causes you to feel "weakness" or shame as a mother? Are you open or hesitant to share this, ask for help, or seek counseling?
- How does the knowledge that Christ came for the weak change the way we experience and respond to our own weakness? How should it move us to pray? How should it embolden us to ask for help?
- Jesus came because ALL of us are weak. How does this leveling of the playing field change the way we engage each others weakness? Is your community one in which you can be honest about your experience anxiety, baby-blues, or postpartum depression? Would you be considered a "safe" person for someone struggling with weakness? How can you help foster that vulnerability and honesty?
Jessica is a former teacher, current homeschool mom, and passionate Christ-follower. She has been published onThe Huffington Post and has written an ebook on How To Introduce Your Child To Jesus. She is passionate about helping moms to detach from the ever-present lure of technology (which can feel way more fun than parenting), about helping women recover from worry (been there, done that!) and about how to be a confident, purposeful homeschooling mom. You can follow her blog at http://smarttereachday.com/