To all the women who come across this post, thank you for being here.
I like to think of my journey to Motherhood as one that began before I saw the positive sign on a pregnancy test. I truly believe it began the first moment I realized that God was calling me to the role of Mama, and this includes my season as a Mama in Waiting.
Whenever I write or share a photo of the pregnancy portion of my journey, I always aim to ensure that the present day Mamas in Waiting still feel seen. I never want my journey to hurt you or your process, because I get it… The journey to Motherhood is capable of being both beautiful and heartbreaking. If I can give you anything through my posts, I sincerely pray that I give you hope.
Today, along with hope, I’m giving you 7 scriptures that I’ve held close to my heart while on this journey. I hope they bless you as much as they have blessed me.
“When the time is right, I the Lord will make it happen.” -Isaiah 60:22
This was the challenging part of the journey for me. I’m a planner who had to learn how to trust God’s timing. It’s easier said than done for most, and I felt God strip away my plans while He delivered His own. Fast forward to current day, and I finally understand that His plan was better all along. Mamas in Waiting, I know it’s hard. I’ve been there where you are sitting. Maybe not in your exact situation, but I deeply understand the waiting season. In my life, it was an unwelcome season that interrupted my plans. It wasn’t until I accepted God’s interruption as grace that I began to understand that His interruptions are always perfectly timed.
“For this child I have prayed.” – 1 Samuel 1:27
We never stopped praying. Never once did I ever consider or entertain the concept of a childless home. I knew the timeline was stretching longer than hoped, but I never lost the hope that we would have a child. I have always seriously considered adoption, and honestly would have been absolutely thrilled to go on that journey and accept the calling of adoption had that been God’s plan. He had different plans for us though, and even though it was hard to understand the timing of His plans, the prayers never stopped.
Let me be clear… my prayer life is not some beautiful green pasture with lillies and butterflies. It gets messy, and sometimes looks like the trenches. God is so gracious, and He hears our cries and loves us so much. A lot of my prayers were meek, but a lot of them were messy. Some of them were spoken by a very confused, sometimes heartbroken woman. But what I’m trying to really explain is that no matter what, the prayers never stopped. No matter how messy it got or how confused or frustrated I felt, the prayers continued.
I encourage you to pray for your children every single day, even if they are not here yet. You won’t regret that time spent with God. Make your requests known to Him. Show Him your heart and ask Him to show you His plans.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.” -Jeremiah 1:5
I often imagine God with our little one before sending them to us. I’ve always sort of been able to picture God with our child, even before becoming pregnant, and that gave me such peace. Knowing that God is in control makes this whole journey so peaceful.
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.” -Psalm 139:13
Very similar to the last verse, but this is a whole different kind of peace. There are so many things to think about when growing a baby. It can be overwhelming to say the least. My perspective during this pregnancy has been very simple…
Don’t worry until there is something to worry about.
Everything that I can’t control is already in God’s hands, and He’s got this whole thing under His control.
You will keep in perfect peace, him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal. -Isaiah 26:3
My word this year was unwavering which is very similar to the concept of being steadfast and pushing through, keeping the faith, not taking my our eyes off Jesus. I wish this was a verse I had cherished in my season of waiting. But I don’t know that I would have appreciated it as much as I do now.
This pregnancy has come with an overwhelming sense of peace, and I really believe that is a gift from God. I am keeping my eyes on Him and my daily thoughts focused on His plans. It’s definitely keeping my mind at ease in this season of so many unknowns and so many new things.
He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes. -Psalm 112:7
Mamas. If I can give you one piece of of advice during pregnancy or even in your season of waiting, it would be to focus on this verse. Pure, God-centered thoughts are the foundation of hope.
Evil thoughts come and go. Daily. The worst thought will pop into my head out of absolutely nowhere, and I have developed the discipline of quick rejection to things that do not serve or support God’s truth. When these thoughts come in, I get a little mad honestly. There’s no place for that type of thinking in my mind. I don’t tolerate it for a second. This discipline and practice of rejection has helped me tremendously, especially in keeping my mind sharp and clear. I go straight back to the blessing of life and replace these unwelcome thoughts will truths that God has given us.
My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ‘s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ‘s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. -2 Corinthians 12:8-10
This last verse is so dear to my heart. I’ve never felt the grace of God like I do right now. When I look back over my years as a Mama in Waiting, all I see now is grace. All that heartache has been washed by His grace. And the grace was there all along, I just didn’t see it. I think about how He kept me from hardship so many times, and even though I thought I was missing out on the blessings, I wasn’t. I was given so many other blessings during those years, and I see them so clearly. I also see that this blessing had to happen now. It wasn’t meant for 2018, 2019, 2020… this baby belongs now, and I trust that completely.
I sincerely hope these scriptures come as a comfort to you, in whatever season of life you are in. They have certainly encouraged me and helped me along the way. This journey to Motherhood didn’t begin when I found out I was pregnant. I believe it began when I first felt God’s calling to parent. I don’t know the exact time or day, but I’ve known for a very long time that this was something He had planned for me. I got a little impatient when His timeline didn’t fit mine, and that’s okay. It happens.
My prayer for all of the women and families who feel they’ve been called to parent and are in a season of waiting is that your heart can be filled with His grace and love. Trust Him. Even when it’s hard. Keep your eyes focused on Him and draw near to Him in your most challenging moments. I promise He will never leave you.
xo – a Mama who remembers her season of waiting and sees you being so brave in yours
EAT PRAY WIFE 