Wednesday, May 13, 2015

More {Mother's Day 2015}

It is a little late, but we celebrated our first Mother's Day with Hannah in our family this past weekend.  It was a big day for Miss H.  She participated in our Parent-Congregational Prayer Covenant (think Dedication Service) at church that morning and then went to her very first "large" family gathering (outside our home!!) afterward.  Wow!  What a day and she took all of it in stride (we had our fair share of recharging those batteries for a couple days afterward, but we seem to be fully recovered at this point).

I am so thankful for those four faces in the picture above.  Yes, my life is chaotic.  It is hard to get much of anything accomplished other than meals, laundry, and school on a daily basis.  I wipe a lot of bottoms and noses.  I referee a lot of fights.  I navigate uncharted adoption waters.  I struggle to understand them or meet all of their needs simultaneously.  I wipe a lot of tears and utter numerous exasperated sighs.  I am driven to my knees daily over their hearts.  But with all that there is so much more I am blessed to experience.  More hands to set to work over chores happily.  More lips to kiss and necks to hug.  More hands to hold and books to read.  More training and disciplining (which only helps me grow stronger in my own faith).  More giggles.  More romping and jumping.  More boo boos to tend to.  More hair-do's to style.  More teeth to brush and lost blankets or lovies to locate.  More car seats to buckle.  More mouths to feed.  But all that more is blessing.  Yes, more makes more work and longer days, greater frustration and additional tears shed (yep, I'm a crier!), but more makes more joy as well.

Mothering is the hardest, most sanctifying thing I have ever done.  It is the most challenging job I've ever had.  I am confronted with my own sin and the sin in the hearts of my children on a daily basis.  Yet through each moment, He is there, providing and pouring His Spirit into me in order to tackle all that each day holds.  Adding our fourth child to our family this year has been the most stretching experience I've had, but it is so worth it.  Worth it for all the more.

 As I raise my four babies, I daily come to a deeper understanding of the many sacrifices my mother made and continues to make on my behalf.  I am also deeply aware of a mother in China who may or may not celebrate the life she has given us.  I am the mother of someone else's child.  There is tragedy and privilege all wrapped up in that statement.  To her I am ever so grateful for the gift she has given our family.  For allowing us to have more.

So this Mother's Day I enjoyed all the more He has graciously allowed me to steward for this time.  The good, the bad, the hard, the ugly, the difficult, the challenging, the exhausting, the lovely, the sweet, and the tender--yes, I thank Him for all of it.  All of my more.

No comments:

Post a Comment