BETHANY BELUE | CONTRIBUTOR
It had been a good day. A day of errands, laundry, reading books together, playing, and caring for my children. I tucked my 3 and 2-year-olds into bed, came downstairs and sat my tired body on the couch. I opened social media for a few minutes before cleaning up from the day.
In a matter of moments, I felt my heart go from thankful and satisfied to longing for more and dissatisfied with what I hadn’t accomplished that day. My feed was filled with creative lunches for toddlers, colorful crafts, ways to organize toys, parenting quotes, and friends going on adventures that looked more exciting than a day at home with my children. None of these posts were wrong or sinful, but my heart was. I went from feeling thankful for my day and the opportunity to be home with my children to thinking I needed to do more in my role as a mother.
Different Callings and Seasons
Several years ago, I remember reading this passage on singleness: “Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, to which God has called Him” (1 Cor. 7:17). As I wrestled with my thoughts about motherhood, this same passage stirred in my heart. The Lord has given us different callings and giftings. He has given us different seasons to walk in and different stories for our lives. Whether it be social media, a conversation with friends, or observing others around us, it is so easy to compare ourselves in our callings. It is easy to look at someone else’s life and think that maybe their life has more purpose than our own, that they are making a greater difference, that they have their life together when our own life feels hard and messy.
The beauty of being a child of God is that our lives are not our own. We belong to Jesus, and He created us with a calling and purpose that is bigger than ourselves. Question 1 in the Westminster Shorter catechism is “What is the chief end of man?” It answers by saying, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” Our calling as believers is to glorify God. This looks different for each one of us in different seasons of life, but there is no calling for a believer that is less than another.
My life has looked different through various seasons. As a mother of young children, it is easy to think that my days formerly spent working full-time, traveling, and experiencing more life outside the home were greater than my calling now. The reality is that the Lord has called me to this season. It is a calling to lay aside my own desires for the lives of others. It is a calling to live a life of servanthood in a way that requires deep humility and selflessness. I have the opportunity daily to learn what it means to put others before myself in a tangible way. Most days my life doesn’t look anything like the social media posts that fill my feed. Most days I am on my hands and knees picking up the crumbs from another meal, nursing boo-boos from another fall, cleaning dirty hands, reading their favorite book before naptime, and caring for the many needs that arise. Many days I get to the end of the day and think “did I do anything productive today”? Did I make any difference today”? In those moments, I am reminded how important it is to return to God’s Word. To remember the core truths of my identity in Christ.
A Model of Servanthood
Philippians 2:4-8 is a passage that presents both a challenge and a promise: “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
I can live selflessly because Jesus was selfless. His own Father sacrificed Him on the cross so that you and I may experience life that is bigger than our day-to-day callings. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, I can live my life with hope. I can live my life in freedom. I can be confident that he who called me is faithful and that my accomplishments are not in what I do but in who I serve.
My calling is to love my children well in this season and to disciple their hearts to know Jesus. This may look like making a sandwich in the shape of Mickey Mouse and doing an educational craft that teaches them a Bible story. It also may look like changing diapers, cleaning up messes, and caring for their little hearts.
That night when I got caught up in comparing my life to those on my social media feed, the Lord challenged me to see that I was being robbed of joy in my calling as a mother by fixing my eyes on others rather than Him. I long to be a woman who rests in the Lord, knowing that what he has called me to is to do His will. Dear sister in Christ, whatever season you are in, may you be free to live out your calling, knowing that it is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. And what a beautiful calling that is!
Photo by Bethany Beck on Unsplash
