{"id":9355,"date":"2016-05-07T07:04:09","date_gmt":"2016-05-07T11:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/?p=9355"},"modified":"2016-05-07T08:40:58","modified_gmt":"2016-05-07T12:40:58","slug":"moms-mothering-and-grandmothering-a-life-of-love-launching-and-lifting-to-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/?p=9355","title":{"rendered":"Moms, Mothering, and Grandmothering – a Life of Love, Launching, and Lifting to God"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"Mom<\/a><\/p>\n

[From the Archives]<\/p>\n

\u201cShe watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: \u2018Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.\u2019 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.\u201d\u00a0\u2013 Proverbs 31: 27-30<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/a>My Mom was a treasure \u2013 a\u00a0lavishing of God\u2019s grace\u00a0on four undeserving children. She was my best friend, and I miss her every day. She taught me the most important lessons of life \u2013 the value of hard work, loving and serving others no matter what, and\u00a0a life\u00a0of following God. I have written, not well enough, about her (here<\/a>, here<\/a>, and here,<\/a> etc.). She was my hero, and, though she is in Heaven now, she informs much of how I live life still.<\/p>\n

Whether we are mothers or not, we all have\/had mothers. I hope yours was\/is lovely, and Godly, and inspiring. Whichever is your situation, we have an opportunity to honor those who mother well and we have still other opportunities to love and forgive those who didn\u2019t. My children are grown and I am not supposed to \u201cmother\u201d them now – a heart habit hard to break. Now that their childhood is over, I miss those years. Still,\u00a0like my mom, I will\u00a0encourage and pray and marvel at how God moves in their lives. Grand-parenting is a sweet dividend to mothering. I pray that I will have a season of pouring into those little hearts \u2013 wonder, love,\u00a0and grace.<\/p>\n

Today,\u00a0I\u00a0share a bit out of Ruth Bell Graham\u2019s lovely book Prayers from a Mother\u2019s Heart<\/a>. <\/em>With the Lord now, Mrs. Graham compiled some of her own poetry, her daughter\u2019s, and that of other Godly moms. She touches on all seasons of growing up and mothering. May yours, mothers and mothered, be touched by God\u2019s dearest wisdom and deepest kindnesses.<\/p>\n

\"Blog<\/a><\/p>\n

“Lord, as I stand beside this crib, <\/strong>watching this little boy fall asleep\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

his blond curls sticking to his small, damp forehead, his chubby fingers wrapped tightly around his blanket,<\/em><\/p>\n

my heart is filled with emotion, wonder, and awe. I have so many dreams and ambitions for him.<\/em><\/p>\n

Please help me to remember that he is first of all Yours, and that the most important thing of all is that he grow to love You and follow You. So, Lord, tonight I put aside any and all prayers that could have their roots in selfish motherly desires, and pray these words for him,<\/em><\/p>\n

Beloved child, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.<\/em><\/strong> (1 Cor. 15:58<\/p>\n

Because, Lord, if this prayer is answered, then one day I will be able to say with John that my greatest joy is knowing that my children are walking in the truth.”<\/em> \u2013 Gigi Graham Tchividjian<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Lord, remind me often<\/strong> that parents are intended to be a mooring post, a safe place to stay, a sure place to cast anchor come wind or weather. It is not the time for me to worry about the storms beyond the bay, for now we have the gift of a little time called childhood; tethered to love, the little boat bobs and weaves about the post \u2013 happy and secure!”<\/em> \u2013 Jill Briscoe<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Father, You said<\/strong> that You would contend with those who contend with me and You will save our children (Isa. 49:25).<\/em><\/p>\n

Television, magazines, the classroom, and now the Internet \u2013 all are filled with \u201ccontenders,\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

But I am relying on Your promise.”<\/em> \u2013 Ruth Bell Graham<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Prayer for Hurting Mothers<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Be tender, Lord, we pray with one whose child lies dead today.<\/em><\/p>\n

Be tender, Lord, we plead for those with runaways for whom moms bleed.<\/em><\/p>\n

But be tenderest of all with each whose child no longer cares\u2026is out of reach.”<\/em> \u2013 Ruth Bell Graham<\/strong><\/p>\n

Turning Children\u2019s Cares Over to God<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Lord, I think it is harder to turn the worries and cares of my children over to You than my own. For, through the years, as I have grown in faith, I have learned that You are merciful and kind.<\/em><\/p>\n

Not one time have You failed me, Lord \u2013 why do I fear You will fail mine?”<\/em> \u2013 Ruth Bell Graham<\/strong><\/p>\n

Happy Mother\u2019s Day, Dear Ones. May today not just be about flowers, cards, or dinners out. May this be a day that\u2019s\u00a0full of encouragement\u00a0for moms \u201cto go deep into their gifts, to focus on their Maker or to see how we\u2019re made and who we\u2019re made to be. \u2026to live out faith in daring, dangerous ways\u2026to know God better.\u201d<\/em> (Caryn Rivadeneira<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Love You Forever.<\/p>\n

Dedicated to my mom-in-love, Julia<\/strong> – who loves us with bold devotion and fierce determination – giving us an example to do the same.\"MomMom,<\/a><\/p>\n

Prayers from a Mother\u2019s Heart<\/em> compiled by Ruth Bell Graham<\/a><\/p>\n

Mother\u2019s Day Sermons\u2026Ugh<\/a><\/p>\n

Surprised by Motherhood<\/em> \u2013 Lisa-Jo Baker\u2019s Must-Read for All Women and the Bravest of Men<\/a><\/p>\n

Mother\u2019s Day 2015 \u2013 Top Favorite Quotes, Bible Verses, and Holiday History<\/a><\/p>\n

A Long Motherhood \u2013 A Poem for Mother\u2019s Day by John Piper<\/a><\/p>\n

My Mom \u2013 Mildred Byrd McAdams \u2013 Memorial<\/a><\/p>\n

Celebrating the Faith and Work of Our Mothers<\/a><\/p>\n

A Prayer for Young Moms of Little Ones \u2013 my archives<\/a><\/p>\n

The Season of Small Ones \u2013 Mother, God, and Gandalf \u2013 archives<\/a><\/p>\n

Mothering Through the Seasons \u2013 Eyes on God and His on Me \u2013 archives<\/a><\/p>\n

Love You Forever <\/em>by Robert Munsch & Sheila McGraw<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Blog<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll love you forever<\/a>
\nI\u2019ll like you for always
\nAs long as I\u2019m living
\nMy baby you\u2019ll be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0022\"<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[From the Archives] \u201cShe watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: \u2018Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.\u2019 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears … Continue reading Moms, Mothering, and Grandmothering – a Life of Love, Launching, and Lifting to God<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[810,690,371,799,794,147,903,599,825,109,33,317,263,795,1301,887,610],"tags":[3187,3185,959,3189,3186,592,3183,2,3188,24,188,3184,1024,3182,1307,685],"class_list":["post-9355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all-good-gifts","category-babies-children","category-bookmarked-summer","category-church-2","category-faithfulness","category-family-2","category-grace","category-heaven","category-holidays","category-home-2","category-inspired","category-lessons-learned","category-lives-full-of-god","category-love-2","category-mom","category-remembering","category-thanksgiving-or-gratefulness","tag-caryn-rivadeneira","tag-gigi-graham-tchividjian","tag-grandchildren","tag-grandmothering","tag-jill-briscoe","tag-lisa-jo-baker","tag-love-you-forever","tag-mom","tag-mom-in-love","tag-mothers-day","tag-prayers","tag-prayers-from-a-mothers-heart","tag-praying","tag-robert-munsch","tag-ruth-bell-graham","tag-surprised-by-motherhood"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pauPAB-2qT","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9355","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9355"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9355\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9367,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9355\/revisions\/9367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/debmillswriter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}