Survival Guide to Motherhood: A 7-Day Parenting Pep TalkSample

Day 7: How to Rest in Your Identify in Christ

It is important that you, as a woman, know your value. You bring a lot to the table of being a parent. You have many talents and giftings to offer to your child and family, and most importantly, you have a loving, nurturing side that your child desperately needs. It is easy in motherhood to stop valuing yourself because you can feel like you are never measuring up to the expectations you put on yourself or what you feel society is putting on you.

Comparing ourselves to anyone is never good. It will only take us to a bad place mentally. The problem with comparing is that you either determine that you are better or worse than someone else. Either way, you’re wrong.

Again, I guarantee that no mom has it completely together, no matter how much it looks like she does. We are all in need of a Savior. God has given us different gifts, meaning no one is the complete package. God did not design us, the body of believers, to function this way. He has specifically gifted each of us with different gifts so we might work together as one unit (Romans 12:4-8).

I realize that in motherhood, you might need a little more direction on how you can see your worth. Let’s be real: We all need help here! Hardly any of us see our worth the way God intended us to see it. So, I’d love to map out exactly how we can get there. Please keep in mind that this is a process. It will not happen overnight but over a lifetime. The good news is that God sees you today and loves you! And because of that, He wants to help you see yourself the way He does. He wants you to find your worth in Him.

So, how can we value ourselves? Here are a few things to try.

1. Celebrate Who You Are

God created you just the way you are. Psalm 139:13 says,

You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Let’s just think about this verse for a minute. The God of the universe created you! He knit you together in your mother’s womb. He gave you exactly what He wanted you to have. Your eyes, your hair, your body type, your brain, your personality—He created it all. That means you are special!

2. Run Your Own Race

I tell moms all the time that we each have a race set out for us. Hebrews 12:1 says it this way:

Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

My race will look different from your race, and your race will be different from mine. That is okay! What boring lives we would have if we all ran the same race! So stay in your lane and work hard not to be distracted by the other racehorses around you.

3. Know Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses will make you happier and more productive and get along with others more easily. If a person doesn’t know their strengths and weaknesses, they will more than likely live out of their weaknesses all the time. They’ll just stay frustrated at themselves because they are trying to be something they are not. They don’t know what they’re good at to even begin with, so they aren’t sure of the best place to operate.

Read Psalm 139:13-14. How does this passage encourage you to celebrate who you are and the identity God has given you?

Be encouraged, moms! Your family and friends may not see everything you do, but your heavenly Father does. He loves and cares for you deeply. Lean into Him in your mothering journey, and He will direct your path!

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We hope this plan was helpful to you. You can read more from Karen Stubbs in her book, Survival Guide to Motherhood, availablehere.