Motherhood is hard enough on its own. My first few months into my motherhood journey were especially challenging after navigating a traumatic birth and unexpected Down syndrome diagnosis.
It had been an especially dark week for me. Everything felt hard. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. So much changes when you become a mom. I was tired and sad and just longing to reach the surface to take a breath. It’s weird to mourn when I had my baby girl in my arms, but I had my expectations of motherhood and Harper’s life completely altered when we learned of her Down syndrome diagnosis.
I finally got out for a much needed walk and decided to listen to a Risen Motherhood podcast. I’d been listening to a few here and there and it had been encouraging. I began listening to Ep. 6 Momma You Matter and something in my heart shifted as I listened.
What is a mom’s primary mission? To teach her children the Gospel, helping them to know and love Jesus. This is the main thing, the thing from which everything else flows. This is the thing that gives all the other things eternal significance.
In that moment God really reminded me that although so much changed about my life and it would indeed look different than what I had expected, something very important didn’t change. My purpose as a mom never changed. I am to teach my child the Gospel, the good news that Jesus died for our sins and was raised to new life, so that whoever believes can have eternal life and a relationship with God.
Hearing this truth lifted me out of my fog and helped me move past the things like Harper might not go to college or live independently. It helped strip away the unimportant dreams and renew my focus on what is truly important. I began to get excited because I knew that Down syndrome in no way will hold her back from knowing and loving God, actually I think it will help her!
With this renewed sense of purpose to share the love of Jesus with my daughter, I began to move forward and embrace the journey ahead. While everything had changed the most important remained the same.
