Mom Needs A Time Out

“For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” – 2 Corinthians 4:17-18.

Before the kids arrive, every future mother has a blueprint in their mind of the kind of mother they will be. They would keep the house spotless, serve delicious and nutritious meals, raise well adjusted, smart, respectful kids while taking three months out of every year to delouse children in Laos. They wanted to be in a word, supermom. But that blueprint usually gets scrapped when the kids arrived. Today, it is easy to feel overwhelmed, exhausted, and depressed at a mom’s unmet expectations. Don’t get me wrong, kids are great. And moms create a unique bond with their kids. Yet there are times when it becomes overwhelming. Elijah was not a mom, but he knew something about feeling overwhelmed and stressed.

Elijah on the surface seemed to have it going on. He was the prophet who was fed by ravens, raised a boy from the dead, called down fire from heaven, led in the destruction of 450 prophets of Baal, and ended a 3 and a half year drought. But the threat of a wicked queen sent him scurrying for the wilderness. Elijah is physically, spiritually, and emotionally exhausted. He is also running for his life and wants God to end it:”… I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.” (1 Kings 19:4). In this moment of great need, God provides refreshment beyond comparison. God first meets Elijah’s physical needs: food, water, and sleep. Then God fortifies Elijah for a forty-day journey and an encounter that meets his spiritual needs. After Elijah has been restored physically and spiritually, God gave Elijah his next assignment.

Proverbs 11:25 says, “…those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.” On our journey of faith we too need refreshment. We need God to provide for us physically, spiritually, and emotionally. If you are a mom, there will be times in your life where you will need to be refreshed and restored just as Elijah did. Your plate is so full you don’t have the time to do the things that will help you deal with the feelings of being stressed out and overwhelmed. You need to find something that will refresh you. That is part of the problem. You add to your full plate by becoming the source of your own refreshment. You see yourself as the solution. You need God for refreshment. God is watching over you. No matter what is going on in your world, you have access to true life from the Life Giver. You need to be connected to Him to make it through the day. You may not see a big difference immediately, but you should be encouraged because God will refresh you when you most need it. The wonder of the walk of grace is that God does just that—again and again.

Discussion Questions:

1. What makes being a mom challenging? Are there days you are overwhelmed and stressed?
2. How do you think God refreshes us?
3. What can we do to help refresh others this week?