Parenting Series: Why Mama Needs A Minute

Aug 8, 2013 | Encouragement, Faith, For Women, Life, Parenting

By Contributing Writer Kristen L. Nelson of Not Alone Mom

Can everyone just leave me alone for a minute PLEASE?! Mama needs a minute.
Sound familiar? There are “those days” that seem to creep up on us when we least expect it.  We’ve all had them.
  • The days where the kids act like they have been raised by wolves.  
  • The days when they look at you with this confused expression as though you are speaking a different language… a language they cannot seem to understand which they so demonstrate by doing exactly what you ask them NOT to do!  

These are the days when they run and scream throughout the house getting into drawers, climbing on furniture, jumping on the couch, chasing their siblings around, pushing and shoving and screaming and yelling… OH MY!!!

 
These are the days where you as their mother, who is supposed to possess such poise and grace (HA!), gets put to the ultimate test.  You can literally feel your mama fuse running shorter and shorter (and shorter) until “that MP900316414moment” happens, the moment where you “lose it”… Where you begin to throw your own adult temper tantrum – a “mommy-tantrum”!
 
So what are we to do when we begin to feel our fuse running so short? Well, we first need to acknowledge what we feel is perfectly normal… we are human after all… we are imperfect beings and can only take so much!  So we turn to God in these times… we sit down, even while the kids are still scurrying about the house like wild animals, and we pray, we get in the Word and we ask God to forgive us for our adult temper tantrums, accepting He will do just that – forgive us.
 
We pray for His peace to flood our heart and mind; we pray for strength – a supernatural strength that can allow us to “do all things through Him” (like taming our wild little animals); we seek patience, that miracle fruit of the Spirit which allows us to approach our children with compassion even in their wildest moments.  We ask Him to fill us with His love… His love that is so powerful it frees us from the guilt of our mommy tantrum allowing us to see our children through His eyes.  And then we accept that He hears our cries for help and rest in knowing He is faithful to answer us and to come to our rescue.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”  Psalm 46:1
Today my mama fuse ran very short!  It caught me totally off guard… the morning seemed to be off to a great start and the next thing I knew everything had gone haywire! From my three year old little girl coloring all over the counter and chair with marker to my 16 month old pulling all of our DVDs out of the drawer – and all of this in the amount of time it took me to use the restroom!!!  This personalized the old saying, “When the cat is away the mice will play”… indeed they did!mama needs a moment
 
The rest of the morning followed suit until mama here just about lost it… OK, truth time… I DID lose it!  I sat down, got in the Word and cried out to God seeking His peace to fill my weary soul… His peace that passes ALL understanding!  I prayed for His grace to wash over me and His love to saturate my heart so that I could move forward with this day a restored mama.
 
It wasn’t long before I could feel the weight of the morning lifting from my shoulders.  I found comfort in Jesus’ words: 
“‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness…” 2 Corinthians 12:9
Thank you Jesus!  What a wonderful God we serve that even in our weakness we are made strong!  That is precisely the reminder this weak and weary mama needed today...
 
Dear Lord, I accept your gift of peace today.  I accept that in my own weakness you are made stronger through me!  I come against the lies of the enemy who would like nothing more than for me to feel defeated in my moments of weakness… I cling to your Word and your promise of being made strong… even in my weakest moments!  Thank you for this precious gift!  In Jesus Mighty Name, Amen”
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3 Comments

  1. Island Traveler

    I just saw myself in this post this morning. Being a parent creates a constant cycle challenges and a priceless blessing at the same time. And yes, God’s love and patience will be a perfect inspiration to be a best parent we could ever be. Thanks.

  2. Janette Wright

    Amen! They grow so fast..and when they are grown up we think back and we miss all of it!!! So glad we have the perfect parent to lean on…only He is able.

  3. Jedidja

    I love it. I LOVE what you’ ve written. Thanks.

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