Celebrating Life

I wanted to post here a big CONGRATULATIONS to my friends that are pregnant. Babies are a sweet blessing from the Lord. Whenever I hear that one of my friends is expecting, it makes my day. It does not matter if it is the 1st or the 7th. Every single one is special and different with a different calling from God.

I do feel for some of my friends who have many children b/c some people are just mean. It is hard to share good news b/c of the way it will be received. Of course, everyone is just thrilled when baby is here and is beautiful and cute. But when Momma is expecting it is a different story for some reason. It is as though the baby isn't as special until he is born. And of course, they must endure the wise cracks. Unfortunately we become the butt of many jokes in the church as well as out. For some reason people do not feel the same way when you announce the first one as they do when you announce the 10th. It is very discouraging and makes me sad. It reflects a world that does not care about the things of God and rejects the true meaning and value of motherhood.

Another thing that concerns me are moms who feel guilty over being afraid of becoming pregnant. Forgive me for being so blunt. It is not the fear that is a concern but the guilt over the fear when the pregnancy happens. Guilt is a bad thing. It is a tool of satan's to discourage us and make us feel unworthy.

I have come to realize that there is NO reason for feeling guilty if you do not experience that giddy excitement when the stick turns pink. Those who haven't had many babies will not know what I mean. The tears that sometimes follow are usually associated with the fear of what is to come, not with the baby. And those who make our calling harder by not receiving the news with joy make the thought of doing it again almost unbearable...if only for a little while.

Let me offer this....
I do not think that Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus, was "excited" to find out that she was pregnant. While she certainly experienced something so marvelous that we will never understand, imagine her thoughts when the angel left and she had some time to settle down.
Imagine her thoughts when she knew she had to tell her family and her sweet Joseph! Imagine the fear!! How would they ever believe her? Even though she was carrying the Lord(!), I doubt that she was thrilled about what was before her. I wonder if she felt guilty later for those thoughts? Perhaps I am being presumptuous, but I feel a sort of kinship with her when I think that she, too, may have felt the way that I do. Also that not everything the Lord asks us to do for him, will be received with joy from the world, but rather with raised eyebrows and ungodly judgment. Mary had to stand alone..... and her answer? "I am the Lord's handmaiden, may it be to me as you have said." Oh Lord, may we all be able to say that in truth!!

Thinking on that helps me with the guilt over the fear that I sometimes feel. Knowing that it is not from the Lord helps me to put it in the right place. Knowing that every precious gift is from the hand of God helps me to face what is to come b/c I am doing the work that he has given me. It is an honor to be called!!

All that to say that no, I don't have this "down" and I struggle with this fear everyday. But this rambling is for myself as well as my friends and I want to encourage you that the Lord's mercies are new everyday for us. Most of us will not be called to a foreign mission field but are called to a mission field right in our own homes. To take on a task that too many women scoff at as being unimportant, is a divine calling. There will be a day when we will have the honor of answering to the Lord for what we have done with what he has given us. I think that thought helps with the fear of man that some of us experience when we look at the heavenly end.

Again...CONGRATULATIONS to my good friends! I am so happy for you!