Six Questions Every Mom Needs to Ask

My children aren’t the first idols to occupy space on the shelf of my heart; but definitely there is a very special spot reserved for them. Each one can command my mind’s attention and my heart’s affection like nothing else.

That’s the definition of worship: The mind’s attention and the heart’s affection set on the object to be adored.

While I might refer to my children as adorable, they are not THE object to be adored.

God’s Word is clear that God alone is to be the object of our worship. But oh how often I allow other things–good things even–like my children, to take the place of the One who made me and saved me.

When God commanded Abraham to offer his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah, Abraham obeyed. If we step back from this familiar, heartbreaking scene we can see that his obedience was swift and steady even in the wake of family drama and personal crisis brought about by his own sinful choices.

Remember:

• He passed his lovely wife off as his sister (twice!) out of fear for his own safety in a foreign land.
• He and Sarah were childless and had taken matters into their own hands despite being promised a son by God.
• The result of this disobedient act was great heartache for the women, the children, and, no doubt, the friends and family who knew and loved them.

But God was always at work perfecting His purpose. In each act of disobedience God was present—chastising, forgiving, redeeming, and renewing what Abraham had tarnished. As Hagar prepared to die in the wilderness along with Abraham’s son Ishmael, God intervened.

She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me” (Genesis 16:13 NIV).

And then:

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. I will establish My covenant between Me and you, And I will multiply you exceedingly” (Genesis 17:1-2 NIV).

No doubt Abraham’s history with the God who sees and the All-Sufficient One came to bear when God asked him to provide his son, his only son whom he loved, as a sacrifice.

He chose obedience.

God wants us to do the same.

He is at work in our lives as mothers, perfecting His purpose in us and through us to the ones we love.

We must be willing to tear down the idolatrous high places that seduce us away from our worship of the One True God and lay on the altar of sacrifice anything that would come between our heart and His.

Nothing can hold a candle to the captivating love a mother has for her children. Love is good. Worship and devotion are not. Love for our children should not displace or overshadow the love we have for God and the commitment He requires in our service to Him.

God never intended for Isaac to die. He condemned child sacrifice, a practice of pagan religions, in Leviticus 18:21 and 20:1. God only wanted to kill anything that took His rightful place in Abraham’s heart. Abraham’s testing taught him what God already knew. When we give God first place in our heart He will provide all that we need and give to us far more than we could ever sacrifice.

As mothers there is much more at stake here than simply our own heart. With every breath we impart the lessons of life to our children. Certainly more than any other skill we want to teach or quality we want to instill, devotion to the One True God is above all else.

Having him as first place in our heart will lead them to keep Him as first place in theirs. All other loves — husband, children, grandchildren — will find their rightful place in our life and know a love from us that is pure and undefiled when God is on the throne of our life.

Six Questions Every Mother Needs to Ask

1. Do I love my children more than I love God?
2. Are my commitments of time, energy, and resources to my children out of love and obedience to God or a result of the worship of my children and adoration of self?
3. Do they know that their sweet lives are dear to me but not more so than my life in Christ?
4. Have they learned that I can be seduced into discontentment and disobedience by peer pressure (theirs and mine)?
5. Can they sense that a carefully timed whine or pout will weaken my resolve to be obedient to my God-given task?
6. Would they say that nothing occupies the throne of my heart but God?

God has entrusted our children to us to be nurtured and loved. But our most important task is to point them to Him. 100 Things I Want to Tell Moms & Mentors and The Shine Bright Devotional Study Guide will encourage and equip you for the task you’ve been given.

God sees and knows all that you need. He is your All-Sufficient One. Give God first place in your heart and entrust your children to Him.