Strength for when you are One Weak Mama!

http://www.incourage.me/incouragers-new-moms

Each MOST Mondays for the next few months (until April 22) I will be posting an encouraging post to my fellow (in)motherhood ladies about Motherhood.  You're welcome to join in as everyone can use some encouragement when it comes to raising kids (or teens or adult kids) - whether they're your own or not!!  Thanks to my good friend, Jessica Hoover over at Hand Me Down Grace for doing last week's as I was drastically under the weather! 

See, I'm getting over a bad cold, pharyngitis acute, to be exact???  I thought I was getting strep throat last weekend.  I had had a sore throat for over 3 days and broke down and went to the doctors.  I have to be deathbed sick to go to the docs, mind you.  Thankfully it wasn't strep but an atypical throat thing that they see this time of year.  I was still put on antibiotics but it took about 3 days for them to kick in and I ended up losing my voice.  Still don't have it back, fully.  I also work in a daycare so I must've picked it up from one of the li'l darlings I work with.  

Photo Credit

It is hard being sick.  No one likes to be sick.  "I want to be sick as a dog, today!"  Said NO ONE EVER.  It's even ten times harder when you have a child because you still have to be "ON" for your little one.  They still need fed, they still need changed, they still crave attention.  My son did not mind that I was hacking around and could barely talk - but he still wanted MOMMY!  I've been in other situations where I was sick and but still had to work - being on a youth getaway and being a youth pastor kind of requires something - but other youth leaders picked up the slack.  There really isn't a lot of people to come help you pick up the slack when you're sick as a mom.  I"m grateful that my parents were able to come and stay with Levi after church so I could go to the Doctor's last week.  I'm grateful for my husband who pitched in and helped with cleaning and laundry and Levi duty while I was getting sick.  But Mommy still doesn't  get "sick days."  (But trust me I know what a blessing that help is because I know not everyone has understanding hubbys OR parents close by!  I count my blessings every day for that!)

The only thing that can get us through those times is God - which gratefully He gave me the strength I needed to get through each day when all I wanted to do was run back to bed and sleep for 48 hours.  The verse that kept coming to mind last week was "Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  Nehemiah 8:10b

The joy of the Lord IS your strength when:

• you're sick and can really use a Mommy sick day
• you're in the "DESPERATE MOM" moment
• you were up 3-4 times with your sweet babe last night and still have to go to work today
• you're exhausted after a long day of work and do not have the energy to chase a toddler around the house for several hours (countdown to bedtime!!)
• etc., etc.

Cling to God on those days.  He will get you through!  He has carried me so many times before I became a mother and I know He will continue to carry me through now ESPECIALLY because I'm a tired mom.