Womanhood: Reflecting on our Source of Fulfillment
Yesterday I was able to hear Joy Forney speak to mamas at Good Shepherd Church here in Oregon. (Joy is a well-known Christian blogger, wife of a missionary pilot, and mama of five). She talked about the way in which we mamas tend to dwell on our failures or, alternatively, rest in the pride of in our choices (breastfeeding, homeschooling, etc.). Yet regardless of our choices, the state of our household, or the appearance of our family, we are loved by God.
We are loved not because we are growing in patience or in parenting prowess, and not because we vow to hold it together after a "mommy fail" moment, but because He made us and we are His beloved work. He loves us as we are, not because of what we do or whether we do it well.
Towards the end of her talk, Joy poured tea from a kettle into a teacup. We are the teacups; God is the kettle. He desires to fill us. But sometimes something is blocking our cup from being filled. Often, we try to fill it ourselves. We distract ourselves and pour in other things that don't bring true contentment. We fill ourselves with less satisfying "feeds."
Bentley Teacup via Snap713
I appreciated being able to talk about these ideas with a small group of women after Joy's talk. I was reminded of how our generation can fill our free moments with social media to the point that we lack opportunities to reflect and process. (Earlier this week, I heard this audio broadcast mention how Internet addiction can correlate with short-term memory problems.)
Do you tend to dwell on your mama failures or on your accomplishments? (I think I do both!)
What helps you keep an accurate self-perspective?