Recently I had an event in my life that brought back memories of what it was like in the MOMYS stage of life. In case you haven’t heard, MOMYS stands for a Mother of Many Young Siblings! I am still a mother of many young siblings, but now there is a big difference because I am also the mother of many older siblings. Maybe this event can demonstrate how much things have changed and express the heart that I have for other MOMYS.

One of our best memories of our time in Europe was the time that we spent in Belgium. We did not have too many expectations for our time in Belgium and did not even know where we were scheduled to stay during our time there. When we arrived, we were very pleasantly surprised to find out that we were spending several days in an old castle, and we had the whole place to ourselves. Tthe castle was beautiful with lots of little nooks and crannies and meandering hallways to explore. It seemed like the perfect place to relax and spend some time reading a book in the privacy of one of these hidden areas of the castle.

One morning during our time there, I awoke earlier than the others and was cozily thinking about the good time I was going to have downstairs sitting by myself with a cup of tea. I was looking forward to taking my Bible down and having some special time with the Lord reminiscing about the trip and enjoying a nice, quiet morning of devotions.

In just a few minutes, though, before I even made it out my bedroom door, I experienced the “event” that brought together this whole blog. One of my older children told me that the baby was a mess, and I knew by the sound effects and atmosphere in the next room that “mess” meant that he had caught the sickness that one of the other younger children had experienced during the night.

The thought of the quiet time downstairs disappeared into thin air as I began to instead experience the sights and sounds of a baby in a “mess.” Before it was all over, linens and clothes had to be changed, a bath given and quite a while later, I had finally taken care of the “mess.”
Of course, by this time everyone else was up and ready to start the day and my plan of starting the day had been drastically changed. As I thought of my options, I remembered what it was like to be a young MOMY. In those days, I experienced a lot of frustration and guilt on days that started out just like this day had. In those days, I couldn’t do what I did next. I asked one of my older daughters to please watch the baby while I went back upstairs to read my Bible. Then I went upstairs, read a few minutes, and fell asleep after all the stress of the morning.

Back in the days of having only small children and no one to help out, getting back to that Bible time was often nearly impossible. If it were not impossible, it certainly wasn’t a private time by myself. It was most often a time of trying to concentrate and offering a short prayer for the day while managing to handle all of childhood’s needs.

Many times I felt guilty over my devotional life because it was far from what I wanted it to be. I felt that I should have gotten up sooner, stayed up later or come up with some different plan. In my heart I wanted to have time with the Lord, but not only was I dealing with many young siblings with needs that often couldn’t wait, but I was also dealing with back to back pregnancies, late night breast feeding and the general weariness that comes with being a MOMY.

Would I do it again? Absolutely! What I am enjoying now is worth it and more. The life I enjoy now is a direct result of spending so much time and physical energy investing in little people that could give little in return. This morning, my husband and I are in California with just our youngest child. Yesterday, we thoroughly enjoyed a day at the Monterey Aquarium. We had not planned on going, but our older children wanted to give us money to go there, so we enjoyed a day at their expense!

Now, I realize something that I did not fully realize then. That is, God is not standing ready to punish the MOMY that wants and actually misses that special time with the Lord because she couldn’t make it happen. He is not standing there criticizing me because I did not get up early enough because the baby cried so much in the night. He is not there critically marking down how many times the devotions were less than satisfactory because I couldn’t hide away somewhere and have peace and quiet to concentrate for a few minutes. Back then, the idea of a prayer closet sounded wonderful-- just give me any closet by myself for a few minutes to restore my sanity!
God was watching and knowing that all along there was a desire in my heart, often made stronger by my circumstances, to spend that time with him. He knew that instead of carelessly skipping opportunities to spend time with Him, I actually more eagerly looked forward to the times when I could slip in a few extra moments of peace and quiet. I know more now than I did then that God knows. He knows where I am, and He knows the conditions I find myself in. He knows when the baby wakes up in a “mess” before I get my Bible time, and He knows when my mind can’t stay alert any longer because I am weary from the struggles of the day.

Am I excusing laziness, lack of discipline, or lack of love for the Lord? I don’t think so. The same God that knew when I couldn’t meet with him also knows when I can and choose not to. He knows when I am weary because I stayed up late the night before in frivolous activities. He knows when I choose to get up early and go shopping before spending time with Him. He knows when it is not my true heart’s desire to meet with Him, and when I am using flimsy excuses to cover my true lack of love and lukewarmness toward Him.

It is reassuring, and it develops a proper fear of God to realize that “God knows” and His knowledge is far purer and holier than ours. When I think that “every one of us shall give an account of himself to God,” I can both rest in the assurance and stand in the fear of God knowing that He really does know.