“He will feed His flock like a Shepherd. He will carry the lambs in His arms, holding them close to His heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young” Isaiah 40:11 (NLT).

Hello friend! 🌻

I remember when a dear friend of mine was overcome with boatloads of condemnation because she couldn’t find time to serve at church. A busy mom of four young children (one with special needs), she wasn’t mentally or physically available to pour herself out in her current season of life. But somebody told her that God expects us to serve the Body of Christ.

Oh Lord, the guilt! I’ve so been there!

When we first started attending church, our daughters were in elementary and middle school. I remember being filled with so much joy when the Lord first led us to this wonderful church that was on fire for God.

The people were very warm and welcoming and the pastor seemed to somehow read my mail every Sunday morning.

I began adjusting to our new normal, doing my best to balance caring for my family and volunteering in women’s ministry and school functions, working a full time job, and attending church and in-person small groups regularly.

But then I found myself on the radar of a very persistent and overbearing lady in one of my small groups who felt it was her mission to get me busy serving with her every Sunday evening to give some parents a night out.

And I caved in to her pressure every week.

As I rocked those sweet babies, the overwhelm I initially felt turned into an intense sense of guilt that filled any space I had left within me. I felt like such a bad person for feeling the way I did.

I loved children but I had two of my own at home who needed more of me than they were receiving. In addition, Sunday evenings was our time to catch up on homework and prepare for the busy week ahead.

I became so taxed and over extended, I started avoiding church and small groups altogether so I didn’t have to run into this lady. Being very young in the faith, I couldn’t understand why the Lord would tell her I wasn’t serving Him enough but I didn’t hear this from Him for myself.

Well, the truth is …. He didn’t!

There will always be well meaning people who believe they are trying to ‘help’ but we need to prayerfully hear from God for ourselves.

If you have young children in this current season and you’ve been surviving on zero sleep, cold coffee, dry shampoo and desperate gulps of God’s Word like chugging from a fire hose most days, please know that God is NOT expecting you to serve even MORE to the point of exhaustion.

I love Isaiah 40:11! Please listen to the heart of your sweet Jesus here …

“He will feed his flock like a Shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young” (NLT).

The original Hebrew word for He gently leads is יְנַהֵֽל׃ (yə·na·hêl) and it means: to lead or guide to a watering place, bring to a place of rest, refresh.

Your Good Shepherd is carrying your children very close to His heart (which means you do not have to carry the weight of motherhood alone) while He gently leads YOU to a place of rest and refreshing in Him!

Jesus will never drive you to mental, emotional and physical exhaustion. His yoke is always easy and His burdens are light and you will find sweet rest for your soul (Matt 11:29-30) …

Momma, your family is your first ministry and when you steward your children well, you are living out your calling and doing it as unto the Lord! 

Your children are a part of those whom Jesus refers to as the least of these in Matthew 25:40 … ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’ (NIV).

I want to encourage you to flow in rhythm with your Good Shepherd and when He brings you an opportunity to serve others, it will be with joy, not guilt and condemnation.

God gives us gifts and talents to serve the body of Christ but His timing is equally as important. There will be seasons where we ourselves need poured into and then there will be other seasons where He pours us out. And the way He has you use your gifts may look different in different seasons.

My friend, keep seeking the Lord’s heart and His voice to lead you and He will never put more on you than you can effectively steward in this season. 

Hugs and Prayers,

He will Gently Lead the Mother Sheep with Their Young – Isaiah 40:11 @ freshgracefortoday.com

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