Parenthood. My calling. For the longest time I couldn’t decide how I felt about that… 6 kids in, maybe I am finally starting to get it.

I never planned on being a mother. I never envisioned kids, chaos, or constantly feeding people. That wasn’t my dream… But God had a bigger one.

Not only did I need to bring these little souls into the world to accomplish their irreplaceable part in His grand design….

Not only did I need to love and be loved by my husband…

Not only did I need to learn from them more about myself…

More than all that… I am certain that the BIGGEST reason God called me to parenthood was to teach me about Himself…

Top 10 things parenthood has taught me about God

1 – There is always more room for love in His heart 

I used to worry that if I had more kids I wouldn’t have enough love to “go around”… but what I discovered after five, now SIX, kids is that the more I have, the GREATER my love for each of them grows. Every child brings me to a deeper level of love and a deeper capacity for love than I ever imagined possible.

Contemplating this helps me to see the value of each human soul and how God can infinitely love each of them as if they were each the only soul to love.

2 – God hates to watch us suffer.

He doesn’t like watching us hurt ourselves, each other, or anything He has given to us.

He doesn’t like listening to us fight or argue among ourselves.

It hurts His heart when we reject His help and His advice and decide to “figure it out” on our own in desperation, trial, and error.

He really just wants us to be happy. He created us for joy. A joy that we can only find in Him.

 

3 – His plans are much bigger than we can comprehend – but that’s not a good reason to doubt Him

My kids fight me about the importance of education all the time!  Doesn’t mean I’m going to let them grow up without it!

4 – He can never protect us from ourselves

No matter how many times I tell my kids what is good for them, it doesn’t mean they are going to listen.

No matter how much it hurts His heart to have us stray from Him, He chose to give us free will on purpose. It makes our choice to stay all that much sweeter.

5 – He has “weak spots” for his children

Sometimes, I can’t say “no” to my babies. Sometimes I change my mind once I say “no” because I decide it was too harsh. Sometimes I just want to dote on the ones I love.

Weak spots don’t necessarily make a person weak.  They don’t demote God to “imperfect” any more than my giving a random gift to my child makes me a bad parent.

“Weak spots” are simply a sign of great LOVE.

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6 -He expects us to make mistakes & plans around them

Except, unlike us, He has perfect foresight. 🙂

I carry a diaper bag around in my car at all times with necessary extra outfits, wipes, first aid, snacks, and tools for every age child and every possible unforeseen situation.  It is more than a diaper bag, it is an arsenal! It enables life to go on every time the unthinkable happens.

God’s “diaper bag” is infinitely more complex, but just as personal.

7 – He is infinitely patient

Even when He’s exasperated, He doesn’t give up on us. In fact, I’m sure He can’t help smiling sometimes.

He knows that we will eventually grow up, and He is willing to wait for that…

as long as it takes.

8 – I am not as capable as I think I am

Sometimes my 3 year old son asks me to help him write his name. So I reach over his shoulder to hold his hand holding the pencil. It’s all a beautiful moment until he doesn’t want to let me guide his hand anymore and decides he would rather scribble all over the page.

Do I ever ask Him to help me and then decide to do it my way anyway? Do I ever think that my way is better?

9 – Even my best efforts can get in God’s way sometimes…

Have you ever had a child offer to “help” you cook?

If you have, you know what I am talking about.  If you haven’t, all I can say is that, unless you wanted help quadrupling the time it takes to complete the project and clean up afterwards, well, you probably won’t find it very helpful.

I often wonder how many projects I try to “help” God with.

I’m sure I have put in WAYYYY too much salt into his metaphorical chocolate chip cookies at some point. Every time I try to stir things up I only end up with flour and eggs all over the entire kitchen and definitely down the crack between the stove and the counter where it is the most fun to clean up (#amirite?!).

But, I still ask Him to let me help…

and the best part???

He still lets me try.

10 – No matter how many times I fail, what messes I make, or what things I break, it is impossible to make Him love me any less.

Thank you, Lord, for your infinite forgiveness.

Just as our choice to love Him is made sweeter by our Free Will, His inexhaustible love is made sweeter by the fact that we are undeserving.

 

Read also: Relating to God as Father – 3 Secrets to a More Childlike Faith

What is He teaching you in the life He has called you to? Share below!

#ParticularlyCALLED #Togetherinthetrenches #IamCALLED

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