Purposed Parent Connected Child Podcast Episode 127 - How to Be a Godly Mom

Welcome to the Purposed Parent/Connected Child podcast – Episode 127 – How to Be a Godly Mom

Goodness! I can’t believe school is about to end and my favorite time of year has arrived! The first blooms of spring have already fallen, making way for additional foliage to emerge. Summer is right around the corner, pushing out the comfortable cooler weather and bringing in blasts of air that feel like a furnace. No matter how hot it gets, I much prefer summer over winter and I’m sure I always will.

Since nothing lasts forever, seasons are a beautiful reminder of why we need to live with eternal perspective. Have you had days, weeks, or years of life that you want to last forever? Or maybe right now you feel the opposite. Do you wonder how much longer you have to endure the season you are experiencing?

Change can be good. Especially when we aren’t aware that we’re not living in ways God desires for us. Change can become the catalyst that moves us to be in sync with the next transformation God has for us.

I distinctly remember a time I wasn’t living in ways that God desires. There was a period in my life before I knew Christ when I wanted to make sure I was a good person. A good woman. A good wife. A good daughter. A good mother. As I found, and purposely began maturing my relationship with Jesus, I understood that limiting myself to “good” was “ungodly.” Why do I say that? Because God wants to richly bless His followers with so much more. He calls us to a much higher standard than good.

Good isn’t good enough for God.

It’s true that in the beginning when God created, He exclaimed that what He made was good. However, God is proclaiming His creations are good, not that we individually or collectively are. What I mean is that what God created is by His intelligent and perfect design. Anything He makes is good. Yet, in this sinful, fallen world, it didn’t take long for God’s creations to choose sin.

Without Christ indwelling us, we continue to move farther from God. Without the Holy Spirit within us, there is no perfection or godliness. In fact, we are unable to claim the status of “good,” let alone “godly.”

So how do you and I move from desiring a good life to building godly lives? Only through Christ. Once believers see our need for God, we begin to realize the need for His perfect Son, Jesus to pay the price for our sin. Once we realize the need for a Savior, and accept the free gift Jesus offers, we are able to live with His Holy Spirit within us. We are no longer bound to the world and the sinful temptations. Through relationship with Him, the Holy Word, and prayerful conversations with God, we can experience a shift from good to godly. That is, if we are seeking Him and a humble, obedient, close connection daily.

What we desire must be held up to a mirror, so to speak, as we look at how our desires are reflected against what God calls for us in His holy Word.

My heart fills with joy when I remember the time between when my first set of children were raised and before my husband and I knew that God was calling us to adopt a sweet baby from China. Before we knew our daughter was waiting for us, I was experiencing deeper growth in my spiritual walk with Christ.

Slowly by slowly, I allowed God greater access to me. I wish I could profess to be one of those people who surrender fully in the moment they accept Christ, but the truth is that each of us have varying degrees of surrender throughout our lifetime. We never reach that finish line in this life. We are so very far beneath God, and so far from Him, that our lifetime should be focused on pursuing deeper relationship with Him and continuing to surrender self.

As my relationship with Jesus deepened and widened, I thought back to when my husband and I had raised our first two children. I was not a Christian when my first two were born. Although I came to follow Jesus when they were young, I wasn’t well discipled. I wasted so many years thinking I was “good” and not striving to be godly.

Would you like to know my deepest regret? Although my children always heard about Jesus, and knew I loved and followed Him, I did not know to intentionally disciple them. I didn’t yet understand that the Christian walk is a beautiful relationship between God and man. I didn’t understand the command in Deuteronomy 6:5-9, which says, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

I assumed that what I was doing to teach my children about Jesus was enough. In reality, they were learning my limited faith, and since I was not growing as well as I should have been, they were only able to mimic a portion of my faith and not being discipled well to chase Christ for themselves. By parenting in this manner, I was ignorantly accidentally teaching my children to follow me instead of God. If we parent in this way, we teach our children to find and craft identity in us, not the Father.

I didn’t yet realize with my first set of children that in order to be a godly mom, I had to first focus on my growing and deepening my walk with God through Jesus. I had to train my mind to think biblically about everything.

I had to view my responsibility as a mother through a biblical lens that removed the worldly filter I was accustomed to using or that we as humans automatically revert to. I had to live the fact that my children were really His and were on loan for a season. God entrusted them into my hands to raise for Him.

How would He judge my work?

As my husband and I grew our walk with Jesus, we knew with certainty that God was calling us to travel to China to bring home the baby God had waiting to be ours. Before we went, we prayed together daily for the girl she would grow to be. Our heart desired that she be a light for Jesus, that she pursue Him with a pure heart, and that she would be an inspiration for others to follow Him.

I remember the days I worked backwards, formulating a plan to raise her with what I prayed were very Christlike goals. Ten years later when we returned to China to bring home our last child, the “master plan” for raising our girls for Christ had been practiced, and our youngest enabled us to continue the course with another beautiful soul to nourish for Jesus.

Although there are so many important details I’m not including here, this story is so important to me, because our second step into parenting with a new generation of children was very intentional. My mind and heart was fixed, anchored on Christ through all obstacles. My husband and I committed to stand on that firm foundation. When deep waters swirled around us, when tragedy and troubles plagued our home, we tightened our grip on that three-fold cord that kept God in the center of all. No matter what happened, we remained committed to raising our girls and influencing our grown son and grandson for Christ.

I want you to know that my heart truly sings with joy when I encourage and equip busy mothers to move past guilt, anxiety, frustration, or the variety of other emotions this world presses upon us. God has greatly pressed upon my heart the need for me, as an older mother, to wrap my arm around you and help you move from these emotions or feelings to a place of peace. I want to encourage and equip mothers to create close connection with Christ and her children and raise kids who chase Christ over culture.

Mothers and grandmothers too, it is time to rise and purposely raise children who know and honor God. How long will mothers sit back and watch as children follow peers over parents or Christ? It doesn’t matter how good a parent you want to be or already are. God calls you and I to be holy, godly mothers – not women who settle for good. There is nothing greater we can do than fix our heart and mind above and focus on the methods given by God to raise children for Him.

If we don’t purposely lead our children to Christ, the world will sway them away. It starts with you and me. Our life must be so focused on living godly lives through Christ that our children clearly see Him through us and desire Him for themselves. It's time to stop the attachment our children place first on peers and mentor the way to attachment with Christ. It starts with the parent. That means you and me. Will you walk with me in creating a movement of mothers who deeply desire to be set-apart women parenting set-apart kids for Christ? It happens moment by moment and you are the first Jesus your children see. What are you showing them?

Remember, you are the mother chosen by God to till the soil of your child’s heart and lay a solid foundation based on biblical truths, not worldly emotions or trends. You were meant to be more than good. Good is defined by human experience, opinions, and feelings. Godly is defined by a holy, sovereign Heavenly Father.

Which definition do you want to use to direct your parenting, relationships, and ultimately – the eternity of your children – whether they’re still in your care or grown and out of the home?

If you’d like more information about influencing your children for Christ intentionally and with godly strength, send me a message at info@terrihitt.com for access to a free mini session on parenting the heart – not reacting to behaviors – no matter the age of your children.

Dear Heavenly Father, You alone are holy. You alone are greater than the good we desire. Move us from good to godly in the ways You know we need. Help us to be more and more pleasing to You each moment. May our heart and mind be in sync with Your desires for us as we move ever nearer to You. Father, I thank you for Your Word, Your perfect guidance. May we understand You better and please You more as we read and act in obedience to it. In the precious name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

If you’re ready to become the godly mom God entrusts you to be for Him and His children, you’ll love my free “Good to Godly: A 31-Day Scripture and Prayer Guide for Moms.” Visit terrihitt.com to receive this resource.

It’s time for believing mothers to be purposed in preparing their children for a lifetime pursuit of Christ. Time is short. Make yours matter for eternity. Remember - if you’re not purposed in knowing Jesus and showing Him to the next generation, the world will sway your children away from Christ. I pray that what you hear on this podcast enables you to stop being a good mom and focus on being a godly parent. Until next week, keep looking Up while focusing on new ways to parent with eternal purpose and connection with your children and Christ.