Encouragement: Be Confident

This past week a group of moms from our church went to go see "Moms' Night Out" and I got some much needed seeds planted in my head. Seeds that most certainly would already be there if I was the good Christian Mama I'm supposed to be and opened my Bible more frequently, but I find that sometimes God will meet you where you are instead of waiting for you to beat around the bush and last week was one of those times.

screen shot from "Moms' Night Out"

The 5 second version of the movie (the one with only the points that struck home for me and perhaps made me tear up a bit) is this:

• You don't have to be perfect.
• You are the Mama your kid/s are meant to have.
• You are adequate.
• You are enough.
• Your job is important.

Listing them out like this makes it all look very simple and succinct, but these are insecurities I fight with everyday and I know I am not alone. I am not alone because I know other Moms feel the same way, but I am not alone because I know that God is with me. I am really just learning, however, how to be confident.

Not cocky know-it-all tell other moms how to be kind of confidence, but rather the kind that feels secure and at peace knowing that I'm doing all I can and the rest is in God's hands. The confidence that understands that I'm not going to be the same kind of mom as Susie Perfect Homemaker because God made me unique.

My Mama gave me Joyce Meyer's "The Confident Mom" book and I just, like 3 minutes ago JUST, started reading and I'll most likely post more about my "aha! moments" while reading but for right now:

"Today, just as during biblical times, there's no such thing as a stereotypical Christian mom. Victorious, confident mothers come in all varieties and personalities. All it takes is one look at how people who've achieved notable success describe their mothers, and we see how strikingly diverse moms can be:

• Abraham Lincoln said his was an "angel."
• Andrew Jackson described his as "brave as a lioness."
• Poet Maya Angelou compared hers to "a hurricane in its perfect power."
• Stevie Wonder called his a "sweet flower of love."

Those statements make it clear: You don't have to have a certain kind of personality to be a great mom."

I think I have been trying too hard to be the mom I see in my head... or maybe just trying to be the perfect combination of my Mama and my Mamaw. I don't know exactly who I was trying to be but I'm really going to start trying to be who I am:

A complex and multi-faceted human being with strong passions, a big heart and desire to always do my best and be in the palm of God's capable hand.