Madly Skipping Around the Room, with full Abandon!

I was reading a story to my kids the other night – it was about a Mum who taught her daughter how to skip … and as I madly skipped around the room, with full abandon (!) to show them, Mummy could do it too, I was struck by something wonderful. My children help me to be myself. I don’t have to impress them or feel embarrassed in their presence – they don’t squash me into a box, restrict me, humiliate me or expect me to behave a particular way! I can just be ‘me’… which may include skipping madly around the room! I think this is a blessing from God that I should savour, as a mother of preschoolers … as I’m sure the time will come, when this will not be the case! Where a madly skipping mother will only bring embarrassment to her children!

Talking with lots of other Mum’s out there, I think it is common that we struggle with ‘who we are’ – when we become mothers. A lot of the things that used to define us, are no longer applicable. But I have found that being a mother has also reminded me, about a lot of things that used to also be ‘me’, that I had forgotten. This is pretty cool!

I have recently been reading and thinking about Psalm 139 in the Bible. It says that God knows everything about us, even better than we know ourselves! ‘Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord' (vs.4)…! He created us. He wonderfully ‘knit me together' (vs.13) in my mother’s womb. It says that ‘all the days ordained for me were written in your book, before one of them came to be’ (vs.16)!

I guess it could be a scary thought to be ‘known’ completely. Our masks and facades do not hold up before God, there is no way to hide from Him. There is no way to impress Him - the Creator of the universe, He knows us 'warts and all'. And yet the Bible describes this Creator God as being compassionate, slow to anger, rich in mercy and abounding in love. He ultimately demonstrated this love, through Jesus death and resurrection - dealing with the 'warts' and shame, that stand in the way of us being able to relate freely with a holy God. Through the work of the cross - our old grubby self is replaced with a new sqeaky clean version!

'Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ.' 2 Corinthians 5:17

How amazing and reassuring to be completely and unconditionally loved by my wonderful Creator God, who knows me - even better than I know myself! I am free to be myself- without shame... and to find my true identity - the person I was created to be, in being in relationship with Him.

This brings peace and joy to my heart!