Dear Working Mom

Hey there, Mama,

I'm sneaking a few minutes after work while the kids are clearing the table to jot this little note to you. I need you to know I see you.

I see how you rush home so you don't miss dinner (again)...and maybe even actually cook dinner this time.

How you struggle when you get home with wanting to sit and stare at the wall and scroll the internet, and wanting to help with homework, snuggle the kids, and sign the cotton-pipkin' reading log with the truthful answer of 20 minutes for once.

You're torn between your callings, and it's a constant tug-o-war for your heart.

I see how you're dog tired, but fold the laundry anyway. And how you ensure lunches are made for tomorrow, faces washed, and each kid's had at least a few minutes face to face with you before bed.

I see you rush home, kick off your pumps and slip on your runners and a cap and make to baseball practice just in time.

I see you swing into Walgreens and grab the last three bottles of sports drink so you kids stay hydrated at marching band practice. Whose idea was it to use wool uniforms in the desert, anyway?

I see you answer that work email in between stirring the stew on the stove and signing the permission slip that was due two days ago.

I see your desire to be the best mom, best wife, and best employee...or boss, or self-employed boss, or supervisor...you can be.

I see those things, and I'm right there with you. I've felt the tug of doubt and guilt, wondering if I there was something else I could do in order to do all the things better.

And you know, sister-friend? God sees, too. And He has a few things to say.

"She watches over the activities of her household
and is never idle.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also praises her:
29 “Many women have done noble deeds,
but you surpass them all!”
30 Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting,
but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.
31 Give her the reward of her labor,
and let her works praise her at the city gates."
Proverbs 31: 27-31 CSB

"7 But as for you, be strong; don’t give up,[a] for your work has a reward.”
2 Chronicles 15:7 CSB

"58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."
1 Corinthians 15:58 CSB

You see, friends, we were made for work—whether that work be the work in the home, with our people; or the work in the office, the classroom, or at that table in the coffee shop you go to three times a week.

When we set our hearts on Him, and live life as He leads, we are smack in the middle of His plan, and that brings Him honor. 

He sees you, Mama. He sees your weary feet and tired eyes. He knows the pull you feel in your heart. And He honors your sacrifices made in honor of Him and His ways.

So, fight on, Working Mom. Know that your labor is not in vain, and your family is in good hands. His hands. The hands of the One who created it all from the beginning.

Blessings,

Jen