Confessions of an Imperfect Christian Mom
Sometimes I think it’s hard to be a Christian mom in the age of social media. As I scroll through my Facebook news feed, I see so many mothers posting about how much they love their kids and being a mom and all the fun things they do together. Some of them homeschool and are so thrilled to be able to do it.
Gosh, the guilt is overwhelming. There are days I can’t wait for the kids to get on the bus. Occasionally, there are times I pray God gives me the strength to cope until the girls go off to college. Why do I feel less like Caroline Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie and more like Lois from Malcom in the Middle? And maybe it’s just me, but it seems like Christian moms are held to a higher standard and are supposed to be like June Cleaver, managing their children’s antics and dishing out motherly advice with a smile and a hug. I’m as opposite from June Cleaver as black is from white.
The funny thing is that God doesn’t expect us to be perfect, so why do I feel guilty? Christian or not, we’re all sinners (Romans 3:23). We all make mistakes. We all do things we know we shouldn’t do. So what if I’m not the Proverbs 31 woman. I’m trying. I’m reading Scripture. I pray daily. I’m working toward leaning more on God and less on my own understanding–not easy for a control freak. Emulating Christ isn’t for sissies. It’s not something you pray about once, and poof, it happens.
Moms have a tough gig. We’re expected to be a lot of things, and we tend to let guilt bring us down if we fail. But we shouldn’t. God loves us just as we are. John Legend’s popular song, “All of Me” reminds me of that. God loves our curves and all our edges; all our perfect imperfections.
