Hope for the Postpartum Momনমুনা

Think About What You Think About

Yesterday we talked about the Israelites and how they grumbled and complained in the desert. The Lord was right there with them about to deliver them from the Egyptians. If you read the previous chapters of Exodus, God provided manna for them. God provided their every need, yet they complained. How quickly they forgot. And how quickly we forget. 

It would have been neat to read in Exodus 14:10 and 11 that “the Israelites were terrified, but they remembered the Lord’s provision in the past, therefore they walked confidently with Him in the desert and waited expectantly to see how He would deliver them.” Instead, they were focused on negative thoughts and forgot all God had done. Their thoughts were not full of truth. Their thoughts were negative and full of lies. They told Moses that dying in Egypt would have been better than the new situation they were in. 

Which leads us to this thought: the importance of our mindset during the postpartum season. Our lives move in the direction of our most powerful thoughts. And our thoughts dictate our feelings, beliefs and actions. When fighting depression, our mind should be fed with powerful truths of who God is and who we are in Christ. You are a beautiful anointed creation of the Most High.  He loves you. He will never leave you alone in this black hole. 

I am going to be super honest and say, this was really hard for me and can still be hard for me. During my postpartum season, my thoughts were so negative and would just spiral out of control. It was hard for me to get my thoughts back on God’s truth. But I did fight for it. I found truths and clung to them. I put scripture by my sink so when I was washing bottles for the millionth time, I was clinging to truth. I put scripture on my bathroom mirror so when I was getting ready, I would cling to truth. 

Romans 12:2 says “be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” How do you renew your mind? By thinking about what you think about. Are your thoughts true or are they lies? If they are lies, replace them with truth. Over time, those truths will help renew your mind from the lies that were infiltrating it. 

Lies I believed during my postpartum season: 

“I am failing.”

“I am not a good mom.”

“I cannot handle this.”

“This is too hard.”

“Things will never get better.”

“I am weary.”

Etc. 

One lie would lead to another lie and then another, and all of a sudden I believed I am the world’s worst mom. 

I took Romans 12:2 to heart and focused on renewing my mind with truth:

“I am not failing. I am doing the best I can. God equips me.” (Hebrews 13:21)

“I am a good mom. God helps me in my weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

“I can handle this.” (Philippians 4:13)

“This might be hard, but God is with me in the hard.” (Psalm 34:17-18)

“Things will get better. He will restore you.” (1 Peter 5:7-10)

“God gives strength to the weary and renews our strength.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)

Although your mind may feel like your enemy now, it is important to understand our brain’s ability to reset. Thanks to neuroplasticity, which allows us to develop different thought patterns, we can change our thoughts. 

Today’s Action Step:

Every day, we want to encourage you not only with truth, but also with an action step. 

Today’s action step: think about what you think about. Grab a journal and write down some of your recent thoughts. If they are negative and not full of truth, grab your Bible and see what God says. Tape a scripture verse close to your sink. Tape a scripture verse on your bathroom mirror. Dwell on scripture. Scripture will heal your soul, even when it seems meaningless in the depths of your postpartum illness. 

Another action step today is mindfulness and daily affirmations. Acknowledge your feelings, but know they are ever changing, never permanent. Feelings are not always factual or reality based. You may feel abandoned or forgotten by God in this dark season, but these feelings are not truth. Truth is that God will never abandon or reject you. John 3:20 in the Message translation says that God is greater than our worried hearts and He knows more about us than we do ourselves. Do not allow your feelings to become your truth. 

Prayer for the Postpartum Mom

Lord, thank You for encouraging my tired soul. Thank You for Your truth that trumps all of the lies in my mind. Help me to renew my mind. Help me to cling to the truth when my mind wanders. Help me to rely on Your strength on my weary days. Today, I boast in my weakness. When I boast in my weakness, Your power comes to rest on me. Your grace is sufficient for me. Your power is made perfect in my weakness. Thank You for equipping me in this season to be the mom You have created me to be. Your truth revives my soul and I thank You for that. Amen.