Motherhood is spiritual warfare
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
2 Corinthians 10:3
I was struggling.
It was the second half of my moon cycle, my luteal phase and it’s not unusual for me to not feel all 100% gangbusters during this time, but this was different.
When one of my kids was extra emotional that day, I found myself irritated and impatient.
When the kitchen was a total disaster, as it often is, I felt like I just couldn’t take ANOTHER second of the chaos.
As I went from room to room, and looked outside into the yard, I just saw things that bothered me.
I’ve been here before.
We’ve all had these feelings
Everything feels grindy and discouraging and nothing we do can go right.
Because I was in familiar territory, I knew what I needed to do and fortunately God did too.
That morning I had read:
“We give things to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.
I will sing praises to the Lord!”
So when the frustrations and irritations surfaced, I knew to find SOMETHING to be thankful for and that helped.
Praising God through the struggles is for me always a sound strategy that helps my heart and my outlook shift.
We know that practicing gratitude can be difficult but it shifts perspective AND it gets results.
Even mainstream science has demonstrated how practicing gratitude can turn one’s mood and mental health in a more positive direction.
God knows and so do I.
But this particular day, being thankful just wasn’t cutting the mustard.
It helped me to have better perspective about the mess and state of the house, the projects I needed to do and how I needed to find patience for my kiddos because they needed me, yet it didn’t penetrate as deeply as I needed.
I still felt yucky inside.
I wanted to be grateful and sing praises, but I couldn’t shake my feelings and then I felt bad about having those feelings.
I kept going about my day, staying busy with my chores, trying to get outside in the fresh air and do the things that were coming easily to me still carrying around a heaviness and quite frankly, grumpiness as I washed the dishes AGAIN, when it suddenly dawned on me,
“This is spiritual.”
The words:
“We do not battle against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
came to mind.
And then a reminder/revelation.
I was engaged in battle.
You see you and I, we live not just in the physical world we are readily acquainted with, but in a spiritual one as well.
Scripture tells us this many times and reminds us of the power we have.
We know that the name of Jesus is more powerful than anything and that Isaiah 54:17 tells us our heritage as servants of God means that NO weapon formed against us will prosper.
We also know that He says:
Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.
Luke 10:19
But that doesn’t insulate us from the battle.
That doesn’t prevent us from being targeted.
I was under spiritual attack that day. Why?
Because I’m doing God’s work-
raising my boys,
running my home,
feeing my family and teaching them to feed and nourish themselves,
caring for my husband,
nourishing my body,
praying over my home, my friends, my family
giving my children a safe, God-centered environment to be trained for life involved my offering my body as a living sacrifice.
This is my spiritual act of worship and you know who doesn’t want it to happen, the dark forces of this age.
You are likely under attack to, especially if you are committed to living your purpose and serving the Lord.
You fulfilling your purpose of mothering your children, not letting the world tell you who or what to be and caring for the people God has put in your charge, is offensive and dangerous to the enemy.
He comes to steal and destroy.
He wants your children confused about who they are so they turn to the world for answers.
He wants your husband desperate for love so he feels resentful towards you.
He wants you distracted by the news, media, screens, externalities that are beyond your control.
He wants you lost in busyness, frustration, feelings of inadequacy or like you can't quite stay on top of the wave, so you WON’T hear God’s voice, you won’t listen to your body, so you never have rest and you’re always anxious, tired and short fused.
Today as you go about your day cleaning your home, fulfilling your responsibilities, caring for your family and nourishing your own body, remember that you have been put in your position for a physical and spiritual purpose, you have an enemy who wants to stop you from doing just that and therefore you need to arm yourself accordingly.
It’s not a trick, it’s not an empty ritual, a trite prayer to be said over and over again mindlessly.
It’s essential, part of your uniform.
You are doing battle daily, Wise Woman.
Put on your armor.
Here’s how-
Prayer:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Lord we pray this prayer over ourselves, over the other women in our life, over our husbands, our children and anyone else that needs this prayer today.
You are the victor.
You tell us, “Take heart, for I have overcome the world” and “It is finished.”
Keep us strong and protected, ready for battle and reliant upon you as we go through our days.
We may not see our simple existences as spiritual warfare, so help us to remember you tell us in your word that we do battle and we do need the right tools to do so.
Praise you for your victory.
Amen
xoxo,
Sarah
Thank you for sharing! Even at 58, this resonates with me through and through! We are more than conquerors, especially when we come together!! Blessings to you and your family!!