Time, transitions, and beginnings: your turn
This week on Mothering Spirit
Vanesa’s essay invited us to reflect on the shifting experience of time through pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.
Kayla’s prayer helped us to bless the beginnings and transitions in our callings as parents.
Resources to keep reflecting
For prayer during pregnancy, check out our e-books of Prayers for Pregnancy and Prayers for Birth. Exciting news: we’ve got Spanish versions of both e-books in the works – stay tuned!
If you’re in a different time of transition, here’s a book for parents in an emptying nest: Giving Thanks and Letting God: Reflections on the Gift of Motherhood by Danielle Bean.
The title of Vanesa’s essay evokes a beautiful image of God for prayer: “As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you” (Isaiah 66:13).
Here’s a letter from a mother about seeking help with postpartum depression. For postpartum mental health concerns, visit Postpartum Support International to find local or virtual support.
In honor of Mothering Spirit’s launch this week, we’re hosting a giveaway from Pacifica Design. To win a copy of this print of Mary and Jesus, leave a comment below. Entries will be accepted until midnight CT on Sept. 15, 2022, and the winner will be announced on Sept. 16, 2022. Follow Pacifica Design on Instagram for more inclusive artwork!
This week’s question for readers
How did you experience God’s presence as you welcomed your children — through pregnancy, birth, fostering, or adoption?
Share your thoughts below – or if you’ve got a longer story to share, email it to us at newsletter@motheringspirit.com for possible inclusion in a future newsletter (400 words max). Please note that newsletter submissions may be edited for length and clarity.
This post contains affiliate links. Photo by Jan Tinneberg on Unsplash.
Before having children, I lived mostly inside my head, my mind whirring on to the next thing before the current thing was even done. My babies taught me how to be fully present in the world (because, as we know, when babies need you, they need you NOW!)
It feels strange to look back at that time of incessant care for others and identify it as a time when I learned how to better hear God’s voice, but the necessity of being fully present for them taught me how to be fully present for myself and for God.
God has been faithful. My sons gained an adoptive father two years ago. Their father passed 3 years before. The four of us then welcomed a sweet baby girl almost ten months ago. It has been a beautiful and rough transition for everyone. But through God’s grace, we’ve created a blended family.