Mother's Day was Sunday, yesterday. How does Faith work in terms of preparing for a celebration?
Some People actually need faith when it comes to holiday celebrations- because believe it or not, it requires faith to celebrate. Often an important holiday falls on a day when we don't quite feel "up to snuff." Maybe you don't feel like being joyful when you're singing "Joy to the World" on Christmas Day. Or you don't feel victorious- and it is Easter Sunday morning.
Sometimes our faith needs a bit of tweaking. And it can happen in the most quiet and unexpected ways.
I enjoyed my two children showing their love for me yesterday, on Mother's Day. But I often don't feel victorious in my mothering skills. I can be paranoid that I am ruining my children for life with each misstep I make in parenting a preteen and a teenager. I'm not sure if I've put enough "good" into them so that when they leave our nest, they really will be able to fly, so to speak.
One child showered me with gifts, expressive as her personality is. She let me know how much she loves me. I was touched.
By the end of the day, though, I had not heard much from my teenaged son. I was riddled with doubt and sadness inside- maybe I don't mean much to him anymore. I stopped in his room to check on him before he went to sleep; checked to see if he had a temperature, as he wasn't feeling well all day. As I leaned over him, suddenly he reached up and hugged me, tightly. My heart flooded with love...and renewed faith. He loves me, I thought, as I returned his hug.
And Faith flooded my soul: I can do this thing called Mothering, I thought.
Yes, I can.
