A Mother's Role

When you hear the word Mother, who do you think of?  It might be the woman who gave birth to you.  It might be the woman who raised you.  Does it make you think of a woman who was always there for you? Or perhaps someone who wasn't really there for you much, but worked all the time to help pay the bills? 

Okay, so clearly Beaver had some interesting ideas of what being a woman is all about...

If you watch the nightly family sitcoms on television or if you ever go on the popular website Pinterest, you will see all sorts of unspoken rules or standards that mothers today are set against.  Married mothers, single mothers, working mothers, and stay at home mothers all have standards to live up to. Often it is the mother's job to take care of the house.  The shopping, cooking, cleaning, planning, and laundry for the family all lay on the mother.  According to The United States Department of Labor website, almost 70% of mothers with children under the age of 18 years of age are working either full-time or part-time. So now they, like many others, have to balance the home chores with a job.

Let's throw kids into that factor now.  After all, this is what makes them mothers.  Child-rearing is a huge job in itself.  Everything from waking with the child at night for diaper changes and feedings, teaching them how to take care of themselves as they get older, helping with homework, carpooling to sports, attending school meetings, and helping them cope with the changes through life is a job a mother often takes on herself.  Knowing who her children's friends are and keeping her children safe, what they like and what they do in their free time, and the children's hopes and dreams are all things that a mother needs to know.  Basically, a mother is supposed to have it all and do it all.

All of this is quite overwhelming.  How can a single person live up to these standards all the time?  I know that I fall short as a working mom.  I struggle with juggling a job, housework and the kids.  I feel like during their teenage years is when they need a mom more than ever to be there for them.  My house should be clean for when they want to have friends over and my responsibility to my job is very important to me.  I think that all moms struggle and become stressed out with the responsibilities of being a mother.

Now as crazy as it sounds, I would like you to take a step back and forget all of what the world thinks a mother should be and look at what God says a mother should be.  Let's look at what the Bible says children are.  ​

Psalm 127:3 Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. ​

Let's remember what God says about being a mom and the role a mother should play, and everything else will fall into place.

Christina Pritzlaff is married with two children. She has completed Early Childhood 1 & 2 classes, Infant Toddler classes, and completed the coursework for her Associates degree in Child Development. Christina splits her time between spending time with her family and working at New Beginnings. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her children, camping, fishing, reading, and doing counted cross-stitch.

---