Life with 2 under 2 is quite the adventure. Newborn snuggles are a little less magical when you are watching your toddler climb up the back of the couch or pull all of the tissues out of the box. My daughter is extremely intelligent which tricks me into thinking she is older than 20 months of age. I often find myself getting frustrated at her lack of independence when in reality she is still a baby herself.
Many people have asked how she feels about the new baby and if she enjoys being an older sister. With an honest response, I will admit that it has not been an easy transition. Between sleepless nights and toddler tantrums, I have caught myself ‘venting’ as a form of coping. It did not take long before I was caught in a trap of focusing on all the challenges instead of highlighting the goodness found within this season of life.
With a convicted heart, I have contemplated how I speak about my husband and children. How do they hear me talk about them? Can they hear my frustrations? Do I speak life into them? Do they know they are loved and wanted? Do I look past their behavior and remind them of their worth, especially on the hard days? Does my voice reflect the voice of our Heavenly Father?
Following the example of St. Monica, I turned to prayer! My daily prayer is that the Lord works through my motherhood to lead my children closer to Him. I pray they never stray from His heart and know our Heavenly Fathers never ending Love.
With prayer on her side, St. Monica persevered through a challenging marriage with a pagan man, Patricius, who had a hot temper just like his mother. Although it is said he respected Monica’s Christian beliefs, Patricius did not permit a Christian baptism for their three children, Augustine, Navigius, and Perpetua.
For years, St. Monica prayed for her family. Eventually, one year before her husband died, she successfully converted both Patricius and his mother! After the death of her husband, Monica sent her 17-year-old son Augustine away for schooling in Carthage. During that time, Augustine became a Manichaean, which was a major religion that saw the world as light and darkness, and when one died, they returned to a world of light, which is where they believed life came from. He lived a completely immortal life full of sin! This deeply hurt his mother to the point where she threw him out of her house.
However, she never stopped praying for him! After a vision, she felt convicted to reconcile with her son. And so, she remained close to him regardless of her disappointment and followed him throughout his career. Eventually he converted back to Christianity and went on to become a theologian and the Bishop of Hippo. Her two daughters joined a religious community founded by their brother. Through the power of prayer, her son who was once known as a sinner and rascal of a man is known today as St. Augustine of Hippo!
Wow! Isn't that a beautiful testimony about the power of prayer?
Heavenly Father, I give to You this day my husband and children. Pull them close to Your heart so they may never lose sight of Your love for them. I offer to You my vocation of marriage. May my husband and I grow closer to one another as we grow closer to You. Increase our faith so that our life is firmly planted upon You regardless of the hardships we encounter. I give to You our children. May You capture their hearts so they never question their worth. Thank You for blessing me with being their mother. Through the intercession of St. Monica, may I always remember to turn to prayer as my first line of defense on the challenging days of motherhood.
St. Monica of Hippo, pray for us!
Until next time, my sister in christ,
Abby
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