The High Calling of Motherhood

Two words come to my mind when I think of motherhood—servanthood and sacrifice—because the truth is that we can’t be the moms God wants us to be without either one of these. In fact, He commands all Christians to practice servanthood and sacrifice. Jesus told His disciples, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Matt. 16:24). However, there’s a big difference between serving our families and being a slave to them.

Servanthood doesn’t mean we should wait on our children hand and foot and make sure they always have everything they want. God put us, along with our husbands, over our children to be their parents—not their best friends or personal genies to grant them their every wish. But it does mean that we mothers are to willingly sacrifice our own desires in order to serve our families.

The Example

I think of my own mom and how grateful I am for her. She is a true Proverbs 31 lady who made our home a place of security, happiness, and love. She homeschooled my three older brothers and me—and lived to tell about it! She did it in a disciplined, organized, gracious, and patient manner. It wasn’t until I was in college that I began to really understand and appreciate all the work she put into our home education and just how well she prepared us for the challenges of higher education. But Mom helped prepare me for something even greater than earning a college degree—the high calling of marriage and motherhood. She not only modeled what a God-honoring wife and mother should be, she also helped me grow with biblical instruction and reproof. Those conversations served as a spiritual compass to guide me through life-changing decisions.

The Purpose

Now I’m the homeschooling mommy, and I’m more appreciative of the sacrifices my mom and dad made for our family. No doubt there are moms reading this right now who can echo this sentiment. You can relate to the unique responsibility of educating your children full-time, day in, day out. The lessons continue long after the school day ends. You are constantly switching roles as mother and teacher; and yes, it can grow wearisome at times. But you can also relate to the unique joy and fulfillment of homeschooling and agree that it’s worth the sacrifices. Because you have a higher purpose than merely grooming good children and good students: your goal should be to rear children who will grow up to love, serve, and glorify God.

We get one chance, moms. Embrace and enjoy the high calling of motherhood!

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Jennifer is a pastor’s wife and mom of two young girls and loves being able to homeschool them. During her own twelve years of homeschooling, Jennifer developed a passion for reading and writing. She earned a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and relishes writing during her free time.