Tell the Mamas in Your Church: You Don’t Have to Be Perfect

By

Jenny Funderburke

-

May 18, 2017

I wonder what mothering was like way back in the olden days… before Facebook. I believe social media has had a significant impact on us as moms. If nothing else, it gives us a window to see what all the other moms are doing that we aren’t.

• We have Pinterest moms who can make all the amazing Valentines and teacher appreciation gifts and home decor.
• Crossfit moms lifted 100 pounds, ran, and jumped over a small building before some of us wake up.
• Healthy moms are serving organic snacks, banning sugar and making their own deodorant.
• Spiritual moms just memorized five chapters of Deuteronomy with their five year old while feeding homeless people.
• Beautiful moms look stunning in every picture and every situation.

Too often, this peek into others’ versions of motherhood often results in a whole lot of Mama guilt. Despite the many things each of us do well, we see all the things that we aren’t. Social media reminds us of all the ways we fall short as Mom’s.
The reality is we all have our parenting faults. We may make really cool decorations, but we yell at our kids to get them out of the house. We may pack healthy lunches, but at bedtime we are just done and regret every word that comes out of our mouths. We may be perfectly fit, but we have allowed our own bodies to become our focus and our idols. None of us are perfect.
And the beautiful part is that none of us have to be.
You, Mama, are a living, breathing example of the gospel in your house.
The gospel is the good news of Jesus. The good news is that we all are broken. None of us are perfect. None of us have it all together. We all mess up. We all fall short. And we all need Jesus. Our brokenness reminds us that Jesus came to heal it.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 says, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Sweet mama, you are not perfect. And the beauty of the gospel is that you don’t have to be. Our job is not to be perfect, but to point our littles towards the only One who is. Our Savior not only puts up with our weaknesses, but died for them. And not only does He forgive them, but He tells us that His strength is made perfect in our weakness.
Our imperfection allows us to point our kids towards Jesus. We teach them that none of us have it all together. We are all broken. We all need Jesus.
So what do we do?

• We parent in the name of Jesus. (Colossians 3:17)  Not for Facebook or Instagram or our own self esteem. We love those babies, enjoy them, and tell them about the grace that comes from our Savior.
• We just keep going. “Let us lay aside every weight, and sin (like the jealousy and the covetousness and the idols we create…) which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Heb. 12:1

Let’s run this race of parenting. Let’s forget comparing and measuring. Let’s give up striving for perfection on social media and strive after Jesus.
This article originally appeared here.