Look What the Lord has Done! with Guest Post by Mukkove Johnson

I want to celebrate all the mothers this Mother’s Day 2019. It is a hard, never-ending job, but well-worth all the effort and tears. No other position in life compares to motherhood. We feel so unworthy of the task, but God supplies all the help we need when our dependency rests upon Him. This month, my guest blogger for “Look What the Lord has Done! Stories of Divine Intervention is Mukkove Johnson.

She shares with us insights God revealed to her when she became a mother. Listen to God’s wisdom as Mukkove writes:

4 Things God has Taught Me as a Mom

By Mukkove Johnson

When I became a mom, I was overwhelmed by the immenseness of my task. This child of mine was going to have their life significantly shaped by me. I felt so inadequate. I felt deficient in so many ways. I haven’t quite figured out how to describe it. When I birthed a child, I also birth a great yearning to grow.

This intense need and desire to grow was a blessing. I had a compelling to improve my character. Learning to do healthy relationships took on a whole new importance. Walking out my faith in God in a way I could say “Do as I do” was vital. I knew I could only give them what I had myself.

God has taught me many things throughout my journey as a mom. I want to share these four:

1. Prepare for Struggles.

I often said I house-proofed my children rather than child-proofing the house. They learned boundaries and self-control from a young age. I could take them anywhere I wanted to and let them know the boundaries. We weren’t restricted to childproofed spaces.

In much the same way, I can’t send my children into a struggle-free world. Instead, I’m doing my best to give them skills and tools to overcome the struggles, to benefit from them. My job is not to keep struggle out of their life. Do I teach them to be wise and avoid all the trouble they can? Absolutely. Will there be trouble anyway? Absolutely.

Since there will be trouble, (Jesus promised there would be until He returns) why not prepare? Prepare by expecting it. Having your identity firmly rooted in God and His word makes struggles easier to bear. Knowing the depth of His goodness makes struggles a blessing. He’s the God who works everything for my good when I’m submitting to His plan. Everything.

2. Raising children is just as much about my growth and development as theirs.

I began my journey as a mom thinking about all I needed and wanted to teach my children. There are so many things! Faith, life skills, and relationships. A big part of why I chose to homeschool was because I felt there was no way I could teach them everything that was on my heart to teach them in evenings and weekends. My days of training the oldest three are almost over, but I’m working to have relationships, so I can continue teaching them.

I soon learned God had just as much He wanted to teach me through my children.

My children, which I love more than you can imagine, have pushed buttons I never knew I had! Why? Because God wants me to grow. I am blessed with children who challenge me. Every challenge I face is an opportunity for me to grow. Most of my growth begins with a healing in my soul.

Soul-wounds, perceived or real, occur from some past circumstance. Out of those wounds arise certain thoughts and beliefs. The enemy of my soul loves to fill my thoughts with lies because of those wounds. Once the wound is healed, I ask God to reveal what is true. Then, I start to think in line with that truth. I believe and act in line with that truth. By submitting to the process of uncovering wounds, allowing God to heal them, and replacing lies with God’s truth, I am transformed from glory to glory

3. My imperfections are a blessing to my children.

It’s hard on me when I mess up. It’s even harder when those mistakes hurt my children. God showed me He wanted to use my mistakes to bless my children.

My mistakes bless my children when I model repentance and reconciliation. They bless my children when I use the opportunity to point them to the God who will never fail them like I do. My children are blessed when they learn to walk through the process of turning a wound into a place of strength.

4. Hearing God’s voice is crucial.

I always wanted to talk with God like a friend. Jesus said we were His friends. I heard of people who talked to God as a friend and God talked to them. Why not me?

When my children were young a speaker came to our church. He talked about spending time listening for God’s voice. I went home and the kids and I started practicing right away. They learned faster than I did. I had to work to stay ahead of them and in some ways learn to encourage from behind.

Over the years, I have learned to hear God’s voice for myself. It is vital for me to hear His voice when I’m struggling with who I am or hard situations. He reminds me who He made me to be. His voice brings wisdom and comfort. Discerning truth and lies is much easier when I listen for His voice.

God has done so much for me

There are still many ways I want to grow and improve. God has given me the blessing of teenagers. He’s showing me the hard work I’ve done, the hard work I’ve allowed Him to do is paying off. My children will not start their adult life where I did. They will certainly have their own struggles and that’s okay.

Trying to capture what God has done for me in a blog post makes me grateful. There’s no way it can fit! These four things are the things that make me who I am today. They shape my character, my thinking, my writing, and my coaching. Anything God has done for me He will do for you! I would love to hear of what God has done for you. He is SO good.

Closing Remarks and Prayer

Yes, God is good. Thank you, Mukkove, for sharing your insights into motherhood. When I think of the ideal mother, I think of the passage in Proverbs 31:28, “Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her” (KJV). Whether you had the perfect mother or not, take a moment this Mother’s Day and appreciate the mother God gave you. If you feel your performance as a mother is lacking, ask Jesus to help you. He can fill in the gaps.

Learn more about Mukkove

Thanks for reading! I’m Mukkove Johnson, The Spirit-led Mom Coach. I enjoy living in Alaska where the summer days are long and light, and the winters are a bit darker and have a beauty that only comes with cold.

My high school sweetheart and I will have our 25^th anniversary this summer. We’re nearing the end of raising three amazing young people and just getting started on the fourth. God has a wonderful way of surprising us! He was preparing me for a new season focused on family and I never saw our newest blessing coming.

I love to write and have a passion to teach moms the things I’ve learned to make their journey easier. Being a mom is hard. It doesn’t have to be lonely. You can find my blog at www.MukkoveJohnson.com/blog. You can also find me on Facebook, just search Mukkove. I think I’m the only one.

“May God take the seed of your story and reap a harvest for His glory.”—Carla G. Pollard