Why Every Young Mom Should Make Time for Ministry
In these little years, it can be easy to convince myself it's not practical to serve outside my home. I've got two under three that have only one incredibly loud vocal setting and their favorite hobby is running in circles while holding breakable items.
But the truth is, I can't serve inside my home without serving outside my home. What I mean is, a vital part of raising my children to know and love the Lord is showing them that loving God means loving others. So while you likely won't find us at a soup kitchen, you will find us doing seemingly small things in the home that matter outside of it.
Right now, one way that looks is making meals for new moms or those that are sick or elderly. Oftentimes, it's for complete strangers. We head to Target to pick up ingredients, talking about how "these are not for us; they're for someone in need." It takes forever to make the meal; there's lots of taste testing and a massive mess at the end. I literally plan an ENTIRE morning for it. We talk about how we're not going to eat the cookies we baked or the cider we bought or the sausage in the lasagna—someone in need is. We talk about being Jesus's hands and feet and how the gospel is played out in the everyday making of meals and care packages.
While it sounds trivial, it's a hard lesson for a two and three-year-old. We drive to the house and drop it off, stopping to talk for a few minutes, the kids wondering why we don't go inside or play with toys. We get back in the car and talk about how people sometimes go through hard things and how serving is a way of loving them through it. We talk about wanting to be generous with our time, money, and talents. That we should use the things God has blessed us with to bless others.
It's simple stuff, but I pray it will make a profound impact on their future.
These little years are not "lost ministry" years; they are a chance for us to get creative with how we serve as mothers, knowing this time is a training ground for our children—a launch pad for them to begin to understand what a lifetime of godly service and ministry looks like in the everyday.
Because to serve the inside, you have to serve the outside too.
For more about motherhood and ministry, listen to Episode 43 | Serving Others Right Where You're At and Episode 32 | Gloria Furman: Missional Motherhood.
