Putting God First

Dear Moms,

God must always come first, yes, even if you have a houseful of children. Let’s make that, especially if you have a houseful of children! Never have I needed God more than when I was raising my seven close-together children, especially since I had the first six in twelve years. Yes, life was busy and that is just why God had to live in the center of my heart; I was incapable of doing all that I had to do without Him. I may slack off my prayertime a day or two now, but not in those days. I needed a lot of grace just to get through those sleepless nights with a newborn, then be awake enough the next morning to put a smile on my face and drive all the children to school. That required grace especially if I had a potty trainer thrown into the mix. My friend, Sue, used to say, “WITHOUT THE GRACE, I CAN’T DO THIS, LORD!” Sue raised eight close-together children. You know that old saying, “I DON’T KNOW MY OWN STRENTGH?” Well, we did. Our strength came totally from God. It still does.

I prefer being a Mary in the Bible. You know, Jesus’ best friend who chose the better portion, by sitting at Jesus’ feet. My joke is God gave me seven children to raise, so I became a Martha; I had no choice. I remember when my sixth child was born, a delightful surprise to the two of us, who thought our quiver was full. Strangers would comment, “WHAT A BEAUTIFUL FAMILY.” What would I respond with the best southern charm that I could muster up, “IT’S A LOT OF WORK.” I learned to embrace the work and I thank God that He was able to train some Proverbs 31 qualities in me through the years. They say “HARD WORK NEVER KILLED ANYONE.” I am living proof of that and I praise God for it. I did have a lot of help from my angels as well.

Those who knew me in those days knew also that my prayertime was at ten o’clock on the dot. Oh that I could be that disciplined again. I would give the preschoolers some toys in the play room, take the nursing baby with me, (mostly so no one killed them), then I would sit down at the kitchen table to pray. For that hour of peace and quiet everyone was instructed to not bother mom because she was praying. Short of an emergency, no one did. That was God’s gift to me. I would sing praise songs, read scripture, journal and intercede before the throne of God and it was Glorious. Then at eleven o’clock on the dot, after getting the instructions from God for the day, I was ready to face the world of mother and wife, my chosen vocation. As I look back on my life and watch my girls trod the path I have paved, with children of their own, I know it was God who saw me through. Like Sue said, “WITHOUT THE GRACE, I CAN’T DO THIS, LORD.”

As the day progressed I would include my little ones in centering my day on God. We would light a candle each day together and sing the song “THIS IS THE DAY.” Throughout the day we would sing praise songs, and whenever I could, I would respond to them in scripture. For instance, if they were impatient, I would sing, “ HAVE PATIENCE, HAVE PATIENCE, DON'T BE IN SUCH A HURRY. WHEN YOU GET IMPATIENT, YOU ONLY START TO WORRY.” Now my girls sing it to their children. Remember passing the torch. Scripture says, "Speak to your children day and night about God." We tried, in our home, to do just that, closing the day with prayer. At night, my husband was in charge of praying with them and putting them to sleep.

Never was the expression, “IT’S ONLY THROUGH THE GRACE OF GOD,” more true, than in motherhood. My advice to you is put God first, and the rest of the day will fall into place. So mom, begin today finding ways to make Him Lord of your day. You’ll be surprised at how peaceful your days will become.

I love to answer questions about my faith as well as motherhood, so just ask away.
Ellen