Manna For Moms

Devotions for Moms Like You!

Megan Breedlove

The Rescue

Megan Breedlove No Comments

One Spring day, my husband and I took our three children, then ages 4, 2½, and 1, to an arts festival downtown. It’s a free, annual festival that showcases a wide variety of types of art. Most people probably get to look at some of the art. Phil and I, due to having three such young kids, got to look at the concession stands. In fact, we were herding ourselves, our double stroller, and our four-year-old towards supper when we passed by a sewer drain. You know—one of those places where there’s a big hole under the curb that leads down to who-knows-where, and a slope from the street down towards the nonexistent curb so that rainwater can run off into the sewers. Ellie had been walking near the curb, and as we got close to the drain, I began to get nervous. I could just envision her falling into the drain. “Ellie, be careful,” I said.

She moved a scant few inches away from the drain and closer to me. “Why?” I could hear her asking in my head, because normally, she wants to know the reason for everything, how everything works, what will happen if something else happens, etc. Amazingly enough, she didn’t ask out loud this time, but she continued in my imagination. “Would I fall in?”

“You might,” I would say seriously, the tone of my voice just right so as to warn her to be careful but not to scare her unduly.

“How would I get out?” she would ask.

And I, demonstrating my motherly powers of reassurance, as well as of the ability to rescue her from absolutely anything, would reply, “I’d climb in and get you out.” And I imagined myself unhesitatingly sliding down into the sewer and rescuing my little girl, valiantly putting out of my mind the stench as well as thoughts of all kinds of bacteria, diseases, and who knows what else.

But then, I realized something. What I was proposing to do for my daughter, should she find herself trapped in sewage and darkness, unable to climb out, was just what Jesus did for us when we found ourselves in the same situation.

We were all trapped in the sewage (sin) of this world and of our lives, living in darkness, unable to climb out. So what did a loving father do? He sent His Son to climb down into the sewage with us and rescue us. Just as the stench of sewage would have assaulted my nostrils were I to climb in to rescue Ellie, so the stench of sin must have assaulted the nostrils of God as He came to this earth and began to live among us. But did He hesitate to climb in? No. He was willing to get Himself dirty in order to be able to wrap His arms around us and say, “I love you. And I’m your Way Out.”

Don’t misunderstand me: Jesus never sinned. As the Son of God, He was perfectly righteous and perfectly sinless. But He chose to live surrounded by sin, because He chose to live with sinners. Isn’t that amazing? In fact, what could be more astounding than the fact that God Himself, pure and holy, would climb into the sewer with us to get us out? He could have said, “Sorry. It’s your own fault you’re in there,” and left us to drown in our sin. But He didn’t. Why?

The answer is simple. First, He loved us. If Ellie had been in that sewer, the only way to show her my love that would have mattered to her would have been to jump in there with her and get her out. Nothing less would have convinced her I loved her. But saving her would have left no doubt in her mind for the rest of her life. Second, Jesus desired to bring glory to God. If I had slipped into the sewer to rescue Ellie and emerged with her, I would have been a hero. I probably would have gotten my name, picture, and story in the paper. People would have recognized my mother-love and admired my character. It’s the same with God. By loving and rescuing us who were caught in sewage, God makes Himself known to the world. He can be known as a hero. We now know His love and admire His character.

We’re out of the sewer. Nothing less than this rescue would have convinced us of God’s love. But His saving us should leave no doubt in our minds as to how much He loves us.

Meditate on that today. If you are a Christian, think about what God literally got Himself into so He could rescue you. Realize that you are no longer in the sewer. You are clean and secure in the arms of the One Who loves you most. Bask in that love. If you’re not a Christian—if you don’t know and love Christ—then call out to Him from the sewer. Let Him rescue you and clean you up. Your life will never be the same. And that’s a wonderful thing.

Colossians 1:13—He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Acceptance

Megan Breedlove No Comments

My kids love to go to the play area at the local mall. It’s an area on the bottom level in the middle of the mall that has comfortable benches (for the parents) surrounding an area with large, stationary plastic toys for kids to climb on, fall off of, etc. The kids love running around with other kids and having fun. We have this routine where we go to the mall, play on the play area for awhile, then pay too much for cookies as we leave.

A couple years ago, when she was about two and a half, I took Ellie, the oldest, to the play area. Ellie is a very sociable girl, and she loves not only to play, but to play with someone. She would go up to girls that looked about her age and ask them if they wanted to play with her. Often, though, kids around her age didn’t have the language skills she did, and they didn’t know how to respond to her. They would just look at her and say nothing, or they would turn away. Other times, Ellie would ask kids about her height to play with her, but because she is tall, kids her height were often older, and they sometimes didn’t want to play with a younger kid.

Of course, there were plenty of times when Ellie successfully matched herself up with a playmate, but on this particular day, she wasn’t having much luck.

Sitting on the benches along the perimeter of the play area, I watched her approach child after child, sweetly and politely asking them if they wanted to play with her.

That day, no one did.

As I sat there, I found my emotions becoming involved. As Ellie approached a child, I would anxiously await the child’s response to her. When the response was negative (either by saying no, or by saying nothing), I became more anxious for the next child to respond positively. This happened several times in a row, and gradually, I noticed other emotions: desperation, hurt, and anger. “Play with my child!” I wanted to shout. “My sweet, precious girl is asking you to play, and you should be glad to!” I also found myself wanting to beg, “Please be kind to her and play with her. Don’t reject her. Don’t hurt her feelings.”

You know what it feels like to want acceptance for your child. You know what it feels like to send your child out into the big scary world of the play area, or preschool, or a birthday party, and hope with everything in your mother-heart that the other kids love your child even a fraction of as much as you do.

I bet God knows how we feel.

Think about it: God has to send his children (us) out into a world full of other people, where he knows we will sometimes find acceptance, but sometimes get hurt and rejected. As I sat there at the mall, I thought to myself, I wonder if God sometimes wants to say the same things I wanted to say: “Love My child! Accept her! She is special and precious to me, and I want you to see that and treat her that way.”

You know what? I know he does, because that’s exactly what he says to us in the Bible. The Bible clearly teaches that each human being is a marvelous creation of God, made in his image. And how many times does God, especially in the person of his son, Jesus, tell us to love each other?

Why do you think he says that so many times? Why does he place so much emphasis on the way we treat each other?

Because he wants us to be like him in the way we love—fully and completely, without respect for persons or situation.

And because he wants the same acceptance and love for us that we want for our children.

Dear mommy friend, do you love others the same way you want others to love your child? If other kids treated your child the way you treat other people, would that be okay with you? Would that kind of treatment be what you want for your child?

Spend some time thinking about that this week. In your interactions with others, ask yourself if the way you are treating them is the way you would want someone to treat your child.

Do you extend to others’ children the same kind of love and acceptance that you want for your child?

Psalm 139:14—I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are your works.

1 John 4:7—Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.

John 13:35—By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

A Mother’s Hand

Megan Breedlove No Comments

It was a perfect day in the summer of 2007. My husband, my three children, and I were on vacation. That morning, we were at the beach. My kids and I sat in the shallows of the lake, playing, the sun warming our skin and the water swirling around us.

As I looked down through the sparkling, clear water to the rocks at the bottom, I saw a leaf come floating into view on the water’s surface. It was a pretty little leaf, perfectly formed and with interesting colors. I captured it with my hand and closed my fingers over it. “Ellie,” I said to my four-year-old, “I have something for you.”

“What is it?” she asked.

“It’s a surprise,” I said, “but you’ll like it.” I expected her to close her eyes and hold out her hands, so I stretched out my closed hand. The only problem was, she didn’t close her eyes or hold out her hands.

Instead, she reached for my hand. “What is it?” she repeated.

“You’ll like it; I promise,” I said.

Instead of preparing to receive my surprise, she began to pry at my closed fingers.

“I promise,” I said.

My assurances didn’t help. She continued to pry at my fingers, so I gave up and opened my hand.

“It’s a leaf,” she said happily.

Sure enough, she thought it was pretty, and sure enough, she enjoyed her surprise. So why hadn’t she been willing to take my word for it about how much she enjoyed it, and to close her eyes and stretch out her hands?

The answer was that she didn’t trust me. She thought I was joking—that I might be trying to convince her to believe me so that I could have the fun of making her look foolish for having believed me. She wanted to be sure that she really was getting something of value before she committed her emotions to trusting me.

Dear friends, do we respond to God the same way? He has promised in His Word to give us so many good things, to pour out blessings on us in abundance. Do we sometimes doubt His goodness? Do we want to pry open His hand to see what He is giving before we commit our emotions to trusting Him?

It’s true that sometimes I tease Ellie, but I never try to make her look foolish. I would never draw her into believing me, only to deliberately disappoint her and laugh at her innocent trust. And if we, being human, would never do such unkind things to our children, why do we suppose that God, being perfectly loving, would ever do such a thing to us?

Granted, God’s blessings are not always what we want or understand. Sometimes, we can be bitterly disappointed when we fail to receive what we wanted (and maybe even prayed desperately for), or when we do receive what we didn’t want. Does that mean we are justified in our wariness of God and His blessings? Can we legitimately say, “Sometimes God isn’t good or doesn’t do good?”

Let me remind you of something that is clearly taught throughout the Bible, over and over. God is always good. He is never evil. And He never has less than a completely loving thought toward us. Yes, God sometimes fails to give us what we want. Yes, God sometimes gives us what we don’t want. But oh, dear sister, don’t let that make you doubt His goodness. Either God is good all the time—and therefore worthy of our lives and our worship—or He isn’t.

And He is. Oh, He is.

I’ve had many griefs and disappointments in my life. Some of them have been close to crushing, where but for God’s goodness, I would have been destroyed. And yet I testify through faith and through my experience in knowing God that He is always good and always loving.

It’s okay not to like what God does, or fails to do. God understands that. But don’t let your displeasure with His actions make you question His character.

God is good…all the time.

God loves you…all the time.

There is a song that encourages Christians by saying, “When you don’t understand, when you don’t see His plan, when you can’t trace His hand, trust His heart.”

Even now, God is stretching out His hand toward you, offering you the riches of His abundant goodness. Will you trust Him to believe that what He has for you is good, even before you know what it is? Or at least that He will use it to your good, even if it involves tragedy?

Will you trust His heart toward you, even when you don’t know what’s in His hand?

James 1:17—Every good and perfect gift is from above.

John 3:16—For God so loved [you] that he gave his only son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Batteries Not Included

Megan Breedlove No Comments

Have you ever stood in the shower, feeling the water beating down on you and listening to a purple caterpillar, lying on its side just outside your shower curtain, bleating the same sad, slowing, and increasingly tuneless few electronic notes over and over?

I have. Not that long ago, in fact.

You see, I am a mother of small children, which means that I don’t get to take showers alone. So there I was, pursuing the ambitious goal of getting clean, when suddenly, the door opened. In came my then three-year-old daughter Ellie, pursuing her goal of being with Mommy anywhere and everywhere. She brought with her her Alphabet Pal, a purple caterpillar with twenty-six legs, one for each letter of the alphabet. This caterpillar is supposed to do various things, depending on which button you push, such as teach phonics or play songs. The only problem was that today, “Ah-Pal” was not successfully doing any of those things.

“Mommy, it’s not working,” Ellie said. To demonstrate, she tried to make it play the song she wanted by pushing one of the buttons. We listened together as the poor caterpillar struggled through its notes, finally ending up several steps below the correct pitch.

“It needs batteries,” I said, “and then it’ll be just fine.”

“Can you get me some batteries?” she asked. (I guess interrupting my shower to get her some batteries seemed like the logical thing for her to ask me to do.)

“Go ask Daddy,” I said.

She dropped the caterpillar on the floor and ran off to go find Daddy, which would have been fine, except that one of the caterpillar’s legs got pressed when it hit the floor, and it stayed that way. Hence, the same repeated, no-longer-musical, “guess-I’ll-have-to-get-out-of-the-shower-after-all-to-turn-it-off” notes.

Fortunately, Ah-Pal had landed close to the tub, and I was able simply to reach an arm out and turn it off. I smiled about the incident, shaking my head and thinking, “Yep, I’m a mother.”

And then, I thought of something else, and suddenly, this was no longer just about caterpillars, batteries, or even a shower.

I imagined Ellie realizing her toy wasn’t working and coming straightaway to find me, believing that I held the knowledge and abilities to make it right. Then, when I told her what needed to be done, she immediately acted upon my proposed solution, trusting that if she did what I said, it would all work out.

Dear Mommy Friend, do we trust God like that? As earthly mothers, we are finite, and our abilities to make things right are limited. But we have an omniscient, omnipotent, and perfectly loving Heavenly Father. When things go wrong, do we approach Him with perfect trust, believing that He will and can help? When He gives us direction, do we then act upon it, knowing that our all-wise, all-powerful God has just given us the key to making everything right?

In this case, everything was made right with batteries and a screwdriver. Sometimes, though, circumstances in life can’t be fixed, and the only way to make things right is not to change what happened, but to cling to God with the strength of a toddler who would rather die than be separated from his mother.

Dear friend, I don’t know what it will take to “fix” the situations in your life–big or small, now or in the future. But I do know that when the batteries are dying and life struggles to produce even a discordant tune, you should run to your Heavenly Father, as fast as you can go. When you get there, tell Him what’s wrong. Then trust Him to know what must be done. If His solution requires action from you, do it. Immediately. And if the solution is nothing more-and nothing less-than clinging to Him, do it. Immediately. He will never let you down.

Proverbs 3:5-6-Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Encouragement for Moms

Megan Breedlove No Comments

As moms, we all need encouragement. During those times when we need to be supported and uplifted, we often call a mommy friend and spend time talking with her. It’s wonderful to have mommy relationships like this. But it’s even better to have a relationship with God Himself, who can provide the best encouragement that speaks most directly to our soul. We should certainly cultivate mommy relationships by both giving and receiving. But let’s not forget the encouragement that God offers us in His Word and makes meaningful to us through the ministry of His Holy Spirit.

I’d like to share with you two verses that encourage me in my role as a mom.

The first is 1 Corinthians 15:58:

Therefore, my dear [sisters], stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Did you catch that? Our labor in the Lord-our mothering-is not in vain. It may look sometimes as if it’s in vain, but it’s not. God promises us that it’s not. Cling to that, mommy friend, when you’re exhausted or discouraged; when it seems like you’ve corrected the same misbehavior a thousand times, yet it still occurs; or when your prayers for your children seem to be going unanswered.

Our labor is not in vain.

The second is Matthew 25:40:

The King will reply, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Jesus didn’t say, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, I appreciate it.” He said, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did it for Me.”

I was meditating on that verse one day a few years ago when God caused me to realize the implications. If everything I do as a mother is really done for Jesus Himself, then even changing a diaper takes on a vast, spiritual significance. Even the mundane, thankless tasks of motherhood become immensely significant. Why? Because we do them not primarily for our children, but for Jesus. Jesus takes our service personally.

I wrote a poem illustrating this realization. I refer to it occasionally when I need to be reminded that what I do matters. I’d like to share it with you in the hopes that it will encourage you, too.

Click here for the poem – “Loving Jesus”

How to Know God

Megan Breedlove No Comments

Because of a sinful nature, every human being is born estranged from God. (Romans 3:23) God is morally perfect (holy), and therefore cannot look upon and ignore our sin. In His holiness, He must punish sin.

So where does that leave us? It leaves us deserving of death and hell. (Romans 6:23) It doesn’t matter if we are a “good person” in terms of the world’s standards. What matters is that God is holy, and we are not. In His perfection, God could easily and rightly consign us all to the hell we deserve. But for His glory, and out of His love for us, He devised a different plan.

That plan involved His only and perfect son Jesus coming to earth to live among us (John 3:16), fully God and fully human at the same time. Jesus lived a perfect life, and at the end of His human life, He was crucified by those who did not believe in Him. God accepted His perfect sacrifice as a sacrifice for our sins-yours and mine. In addition, God now counts Christ’s righteousness as our righteousness-yours and mine.

Isn’t that amazing? In this way, though we have sinned, we can stand spotless before a holy God, in right and loving relationship. There is only one thing we have to do, and that is to accept God’s provision of Jesus as our Savior, turning our life over to Him completely.

How do we do this? By confessing our sins and asking for forgiveness. Yes, it’s really as simple as that. God has promised that if we repent of our sins (which means being sorry we have committed them and desiring to turn from them) and ask for forgiveness, He will faithfully forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from their stains. (1 John 1:9)

We can be clean. We can be in right relationship with God. We can be new creatures, fit for heaven. We can live abundant life and have “every spiritual blessing”. We can receive God’s guidance and comfort through His Holy Spirit Whom He will send to live in our heart. Best of all, we can be right with God, loving Him and being loved infinitely in return.

Precious mommy friend, do you know Him? Do you know the God Who created you and loves you immeasurably? Who loved you so much He sent His only Son to die a cruel death in your place?

You can know Him right now. All it takes is a simple prayer in your own words, telling Him you need and want forgiveness for your sins, and you want to turn your entire life over to Him. He will meet you where you are.

To Him be all the glory that your life will never be the same.

How to Grow Closer to God

Megan Breedlove No Comments

2 Peter 3:18 says, “But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.” Easier said than done, right? After all, as a busy mom, who has time to invest in growing?

Most of us have been there to some extent. Maybe we’ve never said those words, but we’ve lived them. We’ve let other things crowd out the things we know are necessary for growth. We’ve regretted the fact that we don’t have more time available for cultivating a relationship with God, but we haven’t really determined to make the necessary time.

Or maybe it’s just that we don’t really know what to do, so we don’t do much of anything. How do we do it right? What exactly is it that we’re supposed to be doing, anyway?

There are four things that are absolutely vital for our spiritual growth. If we really care about growing, we will make time for these things. Let me say, however, that these are not things whereby, if we do them, we can earn brownie points with God. They are not practices which, if engaged in, will earn us stars on our heavenly chart. Nor are they things only educated people can do, or only the “truly spiritual” (whoever they are); they are things that every Christian can and must do.

First is prayer. Talking with God is absolutely vital to a relationship with Him. How can we expect to have a relationship with someone we never or rarely talk to, or someone we only talk to in order to deliver requests? Prayer is not something that has to be done “right”. If you approach prayer with a sincere heart, truly desiring to know God better, that is “right enough”. There aren’t special words to say. There is no formula to tell you what you must pray about first. So just jump in. Talk to God as you would your most intimate companion, because that is what He is. And don’t forget to listen. True prayer is not merely a monologue delivered heavenward with your eyes closed. Prayer should involve listening, too. It is a two-way conversation between you and God. You can pray anytime, anywhere, in any posture, and about anything. In fact, we are commanded to pray “on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests”. (Ephesians 6:18)) If you want to find out more about prayer, there are many excellent books out there on the subject. However, your most excellent textbook is the Bible. There, you will find examples of many different kinds of prayers. Study them. But most of all, just do it. Just pray.

Second is reading your Bible. God has spoken vividly and at length to us in His Word. Why would we neglect to read it? Again, there is no one right way to read the Bible. There are many different Bible reading plans out there. There are also many different suggestions regarding how you should read the Bible, or how much you should read at a time. I suggest that you ask God how He wants you to read it. Maybe you will read the Bible through in a year. Maybe you will concentrate on one verse each day. What matters is that you are reading and meditating on God’s Word, listening to what He has to tell you, and applying these things to your life. Make the intake of God’s Word a regular part of your spiritual life.

Third is fellowshipping with other believers. We need each other for encouragement. In fact, we are commanded to encourage one another, “and all the more as [we] see the Day (of Christ’s return) approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25) We also need the support and accountability of other believers so that we continue walking in Jesus rather than becoming “hardened by the deceitfulness of sin”. (Hebrews 3:13) Together, we can build each other up in Christ.

Fourth is to fill our minds with things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. (Philippians 4:8) If we allow things into our minds that will tear us down spiritually, that will obviously impact our spiritual growth. Instead, we should fill our minds with things that encourage us in our walk with God. One such thing would be Christian literature and programming. Another would be devotional materials like the ones on this site. Another might be Christian music. Your spirit can be either polluted and weakened or encouraged and strengthened by what you put into your mind. So choose those things that will encourage you and help you in your desire to walk in holiness before the Lord.

One final word: remember that spiritual growth comes from the Lord. No matter how many times you go to church or how many chapters you read in your Bible, spiritual growth, maturity, and insight are granted only by God. Our reason for doing these things is not so that we can accomplish growth on our own. Instead, we practice spiritual disciplines because they are things that God honors with spiritual blessings. Our part is to put ourselves in a position to hear from the Lord. It is God Who will bring the increase.

If you desire to grow spiritually, lay your desire before the Lord. Ask Him what you need to do. Then, prepare to do it…and to grow.

Loving Jesus

Megan Breedlove 6 Comments

I started my day early,
Before the room was light.
I lifted my son from his crib
And wished it was still night.
But as I held him close and said,
“Hi, Kenneth, precious one,”
I knew that as I greeted him,
I greeted too God’s Son.

When my daughter woke up later,
Calling, “Mommy! Mommy! Down!”
I picked her up and hugged her
In her worn Elmo nightgown.
I know she felt the closeness
That a mother’s touch affords.
I welcomed not just Ellie,
But so, too, the Lord of Lords.

That day, I mixed some formula
And opened jars of peas.
I fixed some “pizza butter” bread
When she grinned and said, “Pleeeeease.”
I heated up some leftovers;
I had to nuke them twice.
And when I fed my children,
I was feeding Jesus Christ.

I made some funny faces,
And “played puzzles” on the floor.
I dressed kitties, ran around outside,
And played with them some more.
We laughed and jumped and tickled,
Making memories to be stored.
When I spent time with my children,
I spent time with my Lord.

I wiped up sticky cereal
And washed the dishes clean.
I straightened, picked up, put away,
And dusted in between.
I did six loads of laundry
And folded it like new.
When I cleaned for my children,
I cleaned for my Savior, too.

When my children were both crying,
I held them in my arms.
I cuddled them and whispered
That I’d keep them safe from harm.
I told them how their Father saved them
With His perfect Lamb.
When I comforted my children,
I comforted I AM.

Later on that evening,
I put them in the bath.
I washed their little bodies
As they kicked around and splashed.
I dried them in soft towels
And put their jammies on.
When I had washed my children’s feet,
I’d washed the Holy One.

I cooked and cleaned and rearranged,
Made beds and taught and played.
I made sure that we had food to eat
And that we often prayed.
I died to self. I made a home
From ordinary things.
But when I served my children,
I served the King of Kings.

To some, I have done nothing,
But to two, I’ve done the world.
I made eternal difference
To my precious boy and girl,
And to the One who watches over
Every pathway that I’ve trod.
For when I’ve loved my precious children,
I’ve loved Almighty God.

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