The Fellowship of Motherhood and Idols

Homeschooling, a great private school education, being a very involved mom at public school...

Our children's behavior, our ability to control our children's behavior...

Appearing cute or pretty or put together, having our children appear cute or pretty or put together, having our homes appear cute or pretty or put together...

These are all things I've written about under the topic of Motherhood, things which I have found to be devisive issues among women.  They are things which tend to make people scramble to find a group of friends who shares similar beliefs, with whom to share life with.  They are things which tend to make people feel good about themselves and the choice they've made.

I've got another list going too.

Organic food
Being able to eat at nicer resturants than McDonald's
Cloth diapers
Cheap diapers
Providing our kids with the latest toys
Restricting our kids tv time and encouraging imagination
A frugal existance
New cars and new clothes
Church every Sunday
Family Bible time
A clean house
Just owning a house
A women's right to birth control
A desire to let God choose family size

In and of themselves, none of these things are necessarily evil.  They are all things that are matters of personal choice and conviction.  Paul describes these types of things when he writes,

"So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.  I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. Then you will not be criticized for doing something you believe is good. For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you too. So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up."  (Romans 14)

But as I've said before, so many times these things start to creep in and become a part of our identities.  They are such good things.  They make us feel good.  They make others feel good.  The goal behind many of these things is something good.  But, somehow, they become idols.  They become so important that at times we're willing to sacrifice the feelings of others to show how right or good our choices are.  They become so important that at times we're willing to put aside our need to constantly be in communion with God and stop seeking out His will on these issues.  They become so important that at times, they cause us to fight for a belief rather than to fight for the Gospel. 

Courtney at Storing Up Treasures recently wrote a very heartfelt confession regarding such an idol.  Through a very painful process of losing an adopted child, she came to see how she had propped up adoption and her ability to successfully parent as an idol.  I loved her words.  Probably because I think it's something we all do, especially about things we feel passionately about. 

May we as women daily die, putting aside our personal preferences and matters of individual conviction, instead aligning ourselves with what God wants us to accomplish for each day.  May we not get so caught up in the big issues of life that we forget to make time for the small issue of intimacy with a jealous God.  May we choose to offer ourselves up as living sacrifices who should be consumed by the will of our Savior rather than us consuming Him with what we desire.  And may we remember that we're all in this together, that every other woman struggles with idols of the heart and idols of our passions, and to offer grace and mercy as required.