On Subtlety and Grace

"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made." (Genesis 3:1)


And here's how Old Scratch does it in my world:

".....the idea that somehow this is all pointless. I think one way that the devil distracts and dissuades mothers of many, who came to mothering with the best intentions, is to suggest to them that their wide-eyed optimism and extraordinary openness to life was really a very silly propostition. He teases them with the apparent 'failures' of their mothering experiences, the ungrateful children who hurl ugly words, the stumbling sinfulness of every day life. He taunts them with the little ones yet to raise and undermines every last shred of confidence. And he says, 'don't you think you better look for something more? Clearly, this magnum opus isn't turning out so great.'  "  (Elizabeth Foss, "In the Heart of My Home", blog post 11/05/12)

Wow!  Was Elizabeth at MY house today!?  How did she know this?  Well, she probably could hear us.  Because in my house, we don't have the Richter Scale.  We have the Screech Scale.  And the more frustrated Momma is, the higher the register on the Screech Scale.

Thankfully for us all, Elizabeth addresses conversely, with grace and gratitude, the vocation of being "A Servant Mother"  in this post:

http://www.elizabethfoss.com/reallearning/2012/11/a-servant-mother-31-days-to-remember-the-mission-resumes.html

I must remember that God's purpose for me as a mother is not to mold into Perfect People the precious children He has placed on loan to me, but rather to give those children the unending and unconditional love that encourages them to blossom into the perfectly unique people God already knows they have the potential to be.

Oh -- and before you think I can just stand idly by and calmly watch it all unfold, like magic sparkles in a Disney cartoon, let me assure you of this.  I am well aware that I still have to wipe hineys, correct manners, dispense hugs, referee arguments, grade papers, and make semi-palatable dinners.

But that's not the mission.  The mission is to seek God's Will.  And then get out of His way.

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." (III John 1:4)