Finding the Perfect Mother's Day Gift

Mother's Day is one of those holidays that most people don't know how it came to exist, but go along with it anyway.  From the time we are tiny our dads, grandmas, or older siblings told us on this particular Sunday of the each year, we needed to make something special for Mommy, cook her breakfast in bed, and, most importantly, be especially good.   These instructions have been the motivation behind a plethora of  hand print art pieces, overcooked eggs, and whispered sibling fights.  As we get older, we go through the entire "Things Remembered" collection  knowing that Mom will smile and seem genuinely thrilled with just about anything that has our picture or name on it.  We stand elbow to elbow in the card section at Target picking out the perfect card, or the one card that is left that has a matching envelope and is not in a language we don't speak.  Some years, we go all out and get her something really good like a massage or art made by an actual artist, and Mom's reaction is not just genuine, it's off the charts because she had given up hope of ever getting a gift she really likes.  However, in spite of our stumbling through early morning kitchen destruction, mediocre gifts and buying the same card two years in a row, our moms really are always so thankful on Mother's Day.  They walk around with big smiles and relish well-wishes from family and strangers alike.  For years, it has been a mystery to me why moms are so appreciative when we often don't do such a great job of celebrating them.  

Then, I had a child of my own.  For the past ten months I have been a real life, in the trenches, 24/7 mommy.  Motherhood is a whirlwind!  Some days you feel made for it and some days you think you're completely failing.  Some days you can't remember life before being a mommy and some days you can't remember your name.  It is exhausting and exhilarating.  It is painful and precious.  It is  terrifying and thrilling.  It is jolting and joyful.  It is by far the greatest job I've ever had in my life, even when I'm up at 3am with a teething child who doesn't understand why her mouth hurts.  The gift of a child that you get to love and comfort and shape and teach is tremendous.  The fact that God has trusted you with His precious creation and is letting you represent His love and grace and comfort is humbling and awe-inspiring.  Which is why, I'm looking forward to all of the random, hand crafted,  dollar-store gifts that will come my way in years to come.  The gift of being a mom is truly the apex of gifts.  There is nothing greater that I can be given, and every time I hear "Happy Mother's Day" this year, I'll be thinking about my precious gift and the joy permanently residing in my heart because of her existence.  

Of course, you can still TRY to give a great gift.  Spa days are great, jewelry is always good, and if you have a mom like me, you can't go wrong with a great pair of shoes! Hand print optional.  :)

  

#TBT Share for Grieving, Hopeful Moms & Moms-to-Be

Throwback Thursday seemed like the best day to repost something I shared last year for Mother's Day.  Please share it with any woman in your life that you think it might bring comfort to this week.  Please, continue to pray for all of the women out there hoping to be moms, mourning lost children, and just trying to get through another Mother's Day.  You are always in my prayers. You are always in God's heart.  You are not forgotten! 

See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are ever before me.   Isaiah 49:16

For the Brokenhearted Mothers & Mothers-to-Be

How to Recover From a Sudden Change in Plans

I had a plan for today.  It was a really good plan. A plan I was excited about.   However, in the last hour, that plan was thrown out the window completely.  I had no say in the changes, they just happened.  Now, I must confess I woke up in one of those funky, can't be explained, everything is going to bug me today kind of moods.  I found myself overly irritated with the screen door on my patio and annoyed by my left big toe (neither of those are worth further explanation), so you can imagine, as my carefully planned out day began to fall apart, I was not in the right state of mind to receive that news.   Fortunately for me, my thoughts are not the only ones dancing around in my head.  No, I'm not hearing voices, I'm hearing The Voice. And no, I don't mean Blake, Adam, Usher, or Xtina.  I'm talking about the Holy Spirit.  He lives in me, speaks to me, comforts me, convicts me, and reminds me who I am.  Thank God for Him, because I was on track for a full on adult fit that was going to include wearing pjs all day and buying large amounts of ice cream.  Instead of that bratty tantrum, the thought that He whispered to me was, "if your plan for the day has suddenly changed, look out for the divine appointment!"

Divine appointments are meetings or encounters with people that God intentionally set up with great purpose.  These are those moments when you happen to be sitting on the plane next to someone who doesn't know Christ but is curious about the book you're reading that happens to be by your pastor. When you're in the gym locker room putting on your t-shirt from last year's student ministry camp and the person getting dressed next to you asks about it and happens to have a teenage son in need of something to do this summer.  It might be as simple as the next client coming into your office is in the midst of a personal crisis, and your kindness will be their first glimpse of God's grace today.  You never know when or with whom your divine appointment  is going to be, but I firmly believe they always pop up on the days when my schedule goes out the window.  My baby falling asleep for her morning nap two hours early and my babysitter canceling this afternoon may seem like inconveniences, but I know that God has someone He wants me to encounter today, so He had to rearrange my day to get me in the right places at the right time.   There was nothing wrong with the places I was going to go today, they just weren't on His divine agenda.  He's not surprised by the changes in my day, He's laying out a new course to get me where He wants me to be, starting with this post.  Now it's up to me. I can sit and pout and miss my chance to be used by Him, or I can keep my eyes open for the divine appointment and have a purpose filled day.  I'm going for purpose!

Has God changed your plans recently?  Did you catch your divine appointment?  Share your experience in the comments below.  It will help encourage us all to be on the look out.