6 Ways To Overcome When Being A Mom Is Hard
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“If we all make it through the day, it will be a miracle!”
“If I can only make it until bedtime…”
“If we can just survive today…”
Being a mom is hard work. No arguments here, my friend. Not a single one.
You know the years are fleeting, but today feels like a million minutes long. You’ve got no clue how you’re going to make it until bedtime, let alone their high school graduation.
You’re definitely not alone!
But “just survive today” is the worst kind of a lie you can buy into…even when being a mom is hard. You were made for so much more. And your family deserves so much more.
Do you wish you knew how to conquer today like a boss instead of survive it like the exhausted mom you feel like? The answer is surprisingly simple.
>>>Just Surviving Today Falls Short
The idea of “just surviving” today isn’t in the Bible. (I promise; I’ve looked.)
Redeeming today? Now that’s a Biblical mindset.
What’s the difference?
Survival means you make it through by the skin of your teeth. You crawl across the finish line (but at least you finished, right?). You’ve traded joy for just barely making it.
And sometimes that happens.
After all, you can only listen to so many irrational tantrums and clean up so many messes. Spilled milk or erupting hormones, the messes are messy, and cleaning them up is exhausting.
But what if it didn’t have to be that way? What if you could stop falling short of joy and instead embrace it each and every day, in the life you are living right now?
You can. That’s what redeeming today is all about. You just need to learn how to conquer today like a boss.
Today Has a Purpose
This life you’ve found yourself in the middle of living? It has a purpose today. Even more importantly, you have a purpose today.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10, ESV
The same God who created the earth and spoke it into being has also spoken purpose over you.
“Just survive today” is the lie that satan wants you to believe because it means that today isn’t worth living; it’s only worth surviving. It strips the joy-filled purpose from today and instead relegates it to the back burner while you anticipate a fresh start tomorrow.
That’s not what God wants for you, though. Every day matters. He wants you to make the most of the time you have…even days that that scream for you to kick into survival mode.
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Ephesians 5:15-17
Surviving today isn’t making the best use of the time in these days.
Surviving sucks your identity right out of you and leaves you a shell of the woman God made you to be.
Surviving lacks purpose. Surviving lacks joy. Surviving lacks grace.
And you, my sweet friend, have been promised all of those things.
>>>6 Ways To Conquer Today Like a Boss When Being A Mom Is Hard
Did you know you can live a life of joy-filled purpose right now? As people, our joy and purpose come from making a difference and living connected relationships with those we love most. And you can do that today…even if being a mom is hard (or harder than usual).
And at the very bottom is a free tool to help you! Don’t forget to grab it.
Related: 8 Verses Every Tired Mom Needs To Read
1. Live Today With Wisdom
Whew. If there’s one thing I pray for daily, it’s wisdom. What about you? It’s not easy to know exactly how to handle the things that come up daily as a mom.
How do you equip your kids to stand firm against peer pressure but not alienate friends? How do you help your children stay pure in a world that seems hell-bent on robbing them of their innocence? How do you get small legos out of someone’s left nostril?
You pray for wisdom. And God, in His loving faithfulness to you, gives it.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. ~James 1:5
2. Live Today With Purpose
Sweet sister, when God made you it was with a clear purpose. You were given gifts and talents, passions and dreams.
You are called to live today with purpose.
Don’t let that purpose get lost as you execute your routine work of dusting shelves, cooking dinner, and potty training. Don’t lose it in the frustration with perpetual loads of laundry, missing socks, or toilet seats that somehow always seem to be in the “up” position when you’re in too much of a rush to look down first.
Recognize that serving your family and creating a home is a purpose. It is, in fact, your purpose.
It’s not about the work your hands are doing, but the life and hearts you are molding for your husband and children. It’s about the ministry God has gifted you with. It’s about the influence He has entrusted to you as a wife, a mom, a friend.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. ~Ephesians 2:10
3. Live Today With Joy
Enjoy today. No matter how bad it is, find a reason to delight in the blessings God has given you.
Whether it’s holding a sleeping baby close and breathing in her intoxicating scent, tickling a toddler, making a goofy joke with your third grader, or having ice cream for dinner…find a way to enjoy each day.
And then take it one step further: live with JOY today.
Joy is not the same as happiness; it doesn’t depend on what’s happening in your life, but rather what’s happening in your soul.
Joy has to do with relying on God and trusting Him to be the all-powerful, all-knowing, sovereign God that you know He is and resting under His covering.
For you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. ~Psalm 63:7
Joy is knowing that the trials of today are the redeemed testimonies of God’s goodness tomorrow.
Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! ~Psalm 126:5
Joy is your hope when you’re ready to pull out your hair and scream. It is more powerful than the biggest cup of coffee you can brew, stronger than your child’s sass, and more effective than deep-breathing or hiding in the closet with a box of chocolate.
Joy is your strength to go through each day.
And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. ~Nehemiah 8:10b
4. Live Today With Trust
The checking account gets lower than you’d like, the pantry more empty than is comfortable, and that annoying light on the dashboard reminds you that the price of gas just keeps going up and taking more and more of your resources so you can shuttle everyone around town.
And you just have to trust that God is your provider. He is.
The hard questions come: Where do babies come from? Why do I have to do my school work? Why does no like me, Mommy?
And you just have to trust that what you are giving them is enough for God to work with. It is.
When you trust God, my friend, He will absolutely direct your paths through this mine field of motherhood.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. ~Proverbs 3:5-6
5. Live Today With Strength
God doesn’t promise that you won’t have battles with your kids (or yourself!) over eating carrots instead of cookies or even that you’ll have the wisdom of Solomon when breaking up a civil war between siblings.
Hormonal outbursts are still going to happen and doors will still get slammed when emotions erupt. Tears will still flow and you’ll still wonder what you could have done better. There are no promises that say if you’re a good enough mom that your kids will always make right choices.
He doesn’t promise you won’t get tired or feel ill-equipped, or that you won’t get weary.
What God does promise you is renewed strength when you wait on Him.
…but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength…the shall run and not be weary… ~Isaiah 40:31
6. Live Today With Grace
You don’t have to be strong enough, wise enough, or good enough. You simply need to be His. And then all those beautiful blessings that are a heritage for His children are yours.
That includes grace that is sufficient and power that is made perfect in your weakness.
So on your weakest days, He is still strong enough and His grace is still deep enough. Live with that truth nestled deep within your heart, sweet mama, and trust it.
My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. ~2 Corinthians 12:9
Don’t forget to keep reading so you can grab your free tool to help you start living this way right now!
Related: Soul Care For The Weary Mom
>>>One Tool To Get You Started Today
Have you ever noticed it’s easier to live that joy-filled purpose some days than others? That you can enjoy motherhood one day and think that being a mom is hard the next?What’s the difference?
A lot of times it’s probably you that’s different.
Whether you’re playing on the floor with a toddler, making soup for dinner, or working a job outside of your home, you can do it with wisdom, purpose, joy, trust, strength, and grace. Being a mom is hard work, but so are most things that are truly worth it.
On the days that your heart is anchored securely in God and that you get up and get going, you’re simply more equipped to handle what comes…and the hard work of motherhood is outshined by the joy you have in your children and the trust you have in God to carry you through.
That’s why laying a five-minute foundation every morning is so important!
In just five minutes, you can prepare your heart and mind to enter the day and conquer it like a boss. While five minutes won’t guarantee you’ll never burn dinner or the car won’t break down, it will get you off to a solid start so you can handle those things when they happen.
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And not that I want to ruin the surprise for you, but you’re going to love your Five-Minute Foundations gift (and the bonus lock screen!).
