Memories, Renewed Hope & Prayers

Recalling the happy moments in our motherhood journey and those special moments in our child’s life is a good exercise for our spirit and soul.

The sudden rush of emotions as we recall those precious moments when we flip through the pages of the albums or view the slide shows of the digital photos on our computers or watch the videos… Perhaps we find ourselves in tears as we look at those cute chubby little faces, adoring trusting eyes.  We see their smiles.. and we wish time will stand still then and they remain that little sweet thing…

I took such an exercise just recently and found myself in tears and in awe of the wonder and awesomeness of God – how He created each of my child within my womb and I was reminded of Psalm 139:13-16.  Each of them is uniquely fashioned, designed and created by God with their unique giftings and talents.  A kind heart, an encouraging spirit, a caring heart, a cheerful personality, gentleness, quiet spirit …. these too are special gifts from the Lord although they may not have great economic value in the world’s narratives.  This exercise helped me look for these in my children and give thanks to God for them – the children and their gifts.

And as I looked at the photos and recalled the precious memories, I paused at the photo of each child and said a prayer for them.  Just simple prayers –

• that each of them will know that they are special, wonderfully and fearfully made (Psalm 139:13-15)
• each will know they are a child of God, and they belong to Jesus, set apart for Him (1 Peter 2:9)
• for each of them to grow in wisdom and in stature; in favour with God and men (Luke 2:52), and
• each of them will love God with all their hearts, soul, strength and mind (Deut 6:5)
• that God’s kingdom will come into each of their lives and God’s will be done for each of them here on earth in each of their lives as it is done in heaven (Matt 6:10)
• that God will fulfill His plan and destiny for each of them (Jer 29:11)
• that He will lead them in paths of righteousness of His namesake (Psalm 23:3)

As I did all these, I was reminded of Heart2Heart’s session on When Our Hands are Full – Learning from Mary Recap and what Mary had treasured in her heart. She did not have photos to look back on.  She only had her memory to rely on.  And Mary did well when she treasured the words of the angel and prophets, the promises of God in her heart – in the midst of bad reports of her son, in the midst of perhaps ‘broken dreams’. (For more about Mary, look up these other posts too : Mary of Nazareth & Motherhood, More Learning from Mary of Nazareth, Prayers from session on Learning from Mary)

Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV) says
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) ~
⁶Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Precious memories, Remembering the blessings, God’s promises, Praise and Thanksgiving, Prayers … the treasures of a mom’s heart.  All these give a mom new eyes for her child, renewed hope and trust in the Lord and the peace of God.  (Read our earlier post on The Heart of A Mom)

Proverbs 4:23 NLT says
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

A possible Mommy’s version of Proverbs 4:23 would have been
“Above all else, watch what we put into our hearts regarding our child, for everything we do as a mom, such as how we parent / nurture our child will flow out of this well in our hearts.”

This is a worthwhile exercise.  It helps renew our thoughts with God’s narratives about our child, allowing God to change the way we see and think about our child.  It guards our hearts and minds with the narratives of God.

It is time well spent. 🙂

Why not take some quiet moments this June holidays and reflect on the special memories and blessings God has blessed you with.