Finding God in Motherhood

Finding God in Motherhood

Part 1

written by Kayla Olmstead

Qualities of a Father

Have you ever thought about the relationship between us and God in terms of father/child? If you have been in the church, even for a short time, you have most likely heard God referred to as “Father.” Even those outside the church have probably heard God referred to as “Father” at least once in their lives. My first question for you today is- what words come to mind when you think about God in the role of a father?

Strength? Protector? Provider? Perhaps punisher?

I would venture to guess that your view of God as a father figure has been shaped by your father/the father figure in your life. For many of us this is generally a good relationship that allows us to see the parental side of God in a positive way. For some, it is a bad relationship that alters the way we see God and can cause inaccurate views that could take years of study to overcome.

However, no matter what type of fatherly example we have, for all it is imperfect. No matter how hard our earthly fathers try, human examples and understanding is always imperfect when compared to God.

My father positively shaped my view of God as I watched him provide for our family. Even in hard times, there was always the feeling of trust and safety that we can also find in God. I also saw my father as a punisher. Now, while punishments are deserved, my father was quick to anger and offered little grace. That experience shaped the way I viewed God’s punishment, especially of the Israelites. I saw it as quick, angry, and unmerciful; all of which is untrue to God’s real objective.

As I have grown, and especially since becoming a mother, I can now appreciate God’s timing and the manner in which He punishes consistent wrong doing.

I can now better see the common emotion that drives the actions of a father-love. Love is the reason fathers provide and the reason they punish.

I never gave much thought to love before, mostly because it was always there just existing. I took love for granted. I read the many passages that talked of God’s love for his people, sang many songs saying God is love, felt loved by Him, and yet my understanding was incomplete.  

That all changed when I became a mother for the first time and, slowly, I have discovered a new depth of love that has deepened the way I view God’s love for us.

The heart of a mother

I started to view God’s love for me through the heart of a mother; and a mother’s heart sees God our Father differently.

I had never before thought about how my mother’s love for me reflected God’s love for me as well. God’s motherly qualities are not often talked about, but they are just as important to understanding God as a whole.

Now you may be thinking, “A mother? How does a mother’s heart view God’s love in a way that a father’s may not? After all both are parents and parents love their children.

What is different about a mother’s love and why does it change our perspective of God’s love?

Qualities of a mother

So, my second question for you today is-what words come to mind if you think about God in the role of a mother?

Comforter? Nurturer? Helper? Teacher? Lifegiving?

Comforter sticks out in my mind as a “motherly” quality. When my children are sad and overwhelmed they seek out mommy, even if their sadness is due to a punishment that I had just given them. Somehow, my mere presence brings them comfort, peace, and safety. They seek me out the same way God wants us to seek Him out. He wants to be our comforter. How often do we as Christians say, sing, and read that statement verses actually practicing it?

Isaiah 66:13 says, 

“I will comfort you as a mother comforts her child.”

As a child this promise went over my head because all I thought I wanted was for someone to hold me and stroke my hair until the tears stopped. This promise looks different now from a mother’s heart. A mother’s heart wants more for that child than just to have the tears stop. If the child is overwhelmed, she wants him to feel calm and safe. If the child is sad because of a punishment, she wants him to feel loved enough to change. If the child is injured, she wants to give him her strength to make it through the pain. 

Perhaps the way a mother’s heart differs the most from a fathers heart is the lifegiving nature of both God and a mother.

Both God and mothers understand what it is to love someone before they come into existence. We understand the physical pain life brings and how that pain is a mere shadow when compared to the light it brings. We also understand the need to nurture that life as it continues to grow.

Now, none of this is to say that we should refer to God as our mother or that fathers don’t love their children or that these qualities are solely found in either a mother or a father. God is our Father, both parents love their children equally and completely, but there is a reason it takes a mother and a father. 

God created us male and female to work together, both made in His image, with His qualities, so that we can better understand Him as a whole.