If you are coming to MOMCON, you are in the most eternal-feeling season of your life. You’ve given your body, mental focus and all of who you are to raising these incredible and sometimes savage-feeling humans. It’s easy to feel that our lives start and end here. In our minds, we tell ourselves they are all we live for and all of our “dying to self” is for our children. “But you can’t forget eternity.” I remember God whispering those words on one of the days I was knee deep in wanting to do everything perfectly for my kids. I was caught up in making sure they had the perfect day filled with outings, treats and organic food (because let’s face it, the guilt always creeps in when we pull out that frozen pizza for the second or third time that week, so organic mama was winning that day). Despite all I did that day, I felt that I fell short. The play dates were never long enough, the outings were too long of a drive, and well turns out sometimes organic flavors don’t quite hit the spots like a good ole greasy burger. So, there I sat at the end of the day – worn out, under caffeinated and depleted, feeling like I’d failed as a parent and at life once again. But Catherine, “don’t forget eternity,” God whispered.
When we forget eternity, the mundane doesn’t have an end.
The reward we so desperately seek from our children sometimes doesn’t meet our emotional expectations. When we forget eternity, the world seems to close in on the darker and smaller moments and magnifies each imperfection. When we forget eternity, we miss the purpose of our existence that’s beyond motherhood.
But when we remember eternity, we remember all we do is for the glory and accolades of Christ and Christ alone. When we remember eternity, we remember that we are not just a mother, but we, ourselves, are also daughters of a King that we so desperately need in all our mundane moments. When we remember eternity, the realization of one day standing face to face with our Savior outweighs our perfectly perfect daily schedule, and we strive for his approval over our self-gratification.
Remembering eternity allows us to focus on our immortal existence rather than our selfish mortality. It reminds us that beyond the daily task of motherhood, there is a bigger picture and a bigger God! That’s the mental shift I want to encourage you to have as you spend time with your littles. Every day, every interrupted perfect plan, every emotional tantrum tear is a reminder to lean out of our physical will and lean into our heavenly Savior. Eternity is a reminder to let go of earth and grab on to Heaven.
