Strength | 10 Bible Promises for Mamas
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:9-11
As I write this post, I have tears streaming down my cheeks, there is no greater love than this. It’s the end of Holy Week and God has so beautifully ordained the timing of this promise. All throughout the week, as I’ve been asking God to reveal the truths about His strength, He has continually pointed me back to this truth – the strength of Christ is found as we humbly surrender to God and declare our need for Him.
On this sacred day, as we reflect on the death of our Savior, we see the epitome of His power made perfect in weakness – The perfect, sinless, spotless lamb of God, Jesus, who chose the cross for you and me.
There he hung, bruised and beaten, with nail-pierced hands, Jesus, who chose the cross for you and me.
On that cross, taking on the fullness of the wrath of God, He who knew no sin, Jesus, who chose the cross for you and me.
And as he declared “It is finished,” he bowed his head, yielding up His spirit, Jesus, who chose the cross for you and me.
And because of this, as He chose to surrender to our need for a Savior, it was Jesus who displayed the epitome of weakness as He hung on that cross. But, in that weakness there has never been greater strength or power than this, it was Jesus who died, but it was Jesus who rose. He conquered death, He rose victoriously and He is now seated at the right hand of the Father, it is Jesus who made a way for you and me. He alone has the strength and power to conquer the grave.
This is our strength, the perfect blood of Christ, shed on the cross, that now covers the hearts of sinners for eternity. Because of His death, we now have access to His strength. Our strength as mamas is found alone in Christ, and the strength we seek to muster up on our own to endure hard things and win our battles, will always fail us. But mama, when we are weak, He is strong. Our strength in Christ is found when we humbly surrender, take refuge in our Savior and hold fast to power of His death and resurrection.
1. Our strength in Christ is found when we humbly surrender to God.
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Isaiah 40:28-29
When we humbly surrender our hearts to God, the posture of our heart moves from thinking that we are able to believing that He alone is able; our God will not grow tired or weary in any circumstance or any hard thing. He has promised to give strength to the weary and increase the power of the weak, but could it be that we are not accessing this promise because we are not surrendering to our need for Him in those hard moments and seasons? Our God is faithful, kind and deeply delights in pouring out His strength in and over us as we trust in Him. In every trial we may face, when our pride rises up and our hearts start to believe that “we’ve got this,” we must surrender our hearts to Him and declaring of our need, and in declaration, He will give us His strength and power, that which will never fail us for eternity.
2. Our strength in Christ is found when we take refuge in our Savior.
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Psalm 46:1-3
If God promises to be our refuge and strength, I wonder what else we may be running to in times of trouble, that is keep us from this promise. In this scripture, the word refuge (châsâh) refers to taking shelter in or a place one would flee in danger and the word strength or stronghold (mas’uzzi) refers to a place of strength or protection, to flee to quickly that is inaccessible, secure and a retreat from enemies. God has made a way to be our refuge in times of trouble, a stronghold that is secure in all things, but in order to press into this truth, we may need to look at our lives when the waters rise and see if there may be other things or people that we are running to. God alone is the perfect, unfailing promise of refuge, and He’s inviting you to come.
3. Our strength in Christ is found when we hold fast to power of His death and resurrection.
“It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” and “at that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.”
John 19:30, Matthew 27:51
There is only one way in which we have received all of this, His strength, His power, His refuge and His stronghold, and it is through the death and resurrection of our Savior on the cross. When our hearts feel tired and weary and our world feels like it’s falling apart, God is inviting us to hold fast to the power of His victory. That is the only thing that will stand for all of eternity. As we feel the weight, exhaustion and weariness enter in, may we press into the power of His final words, “It is finished,” those three words have the power to change everything. And it was in those three words that the Savior took on the fullness of the wrath of God for the sins of the world, and its effect was the power of the curtain torn, giving believers the full access to God for eternity, and the earth shook as that promise gave way. The battles we are fighting have already been won, finished and paid in full, may we hold fast to all of this.
In this world, we will be afflicted, perplexed, persecuted and struck down (2 Corinthians 4:8-9), but in sufferings may we cling to the promise of His strength all the more. Our promise is not a life without the feelings of our weariness, weakness or affliction, but our promise is Christ, the one who has overcome, conquering death for our sake, now pouring out His strength over us in all that life brings. Our strength in Christ is found when we humbly surrender, take refuge in our Savior and hold fast to power of His death and resurrection.
Mama, this is God’s invitation to you…a life filled with the strength of Christ to access and hold fast to in every moment, circumstance and season – will you humbly surrender and take hold? In whatever this season of motherhood brings you, our strength as mamas is found alone in Christ, and the strength we seek to muster up on our own will always fail us. Whether it’s the strength to continue on in sleepless nights, the battle we feel in our hearts as our children tantrum and disobey, the crushing weight of trying to simply keep up with the demands of it all, the busy schedules, or the chaos of raising children, He is offering His strength to us.
God has promised you His strength and power. May we be the mamas who choose to take hold.
As a way to celebrate these 10 Bible Promises for Mamas, I have collaborated with my dear friend, Annalisa Sawtell, who is an incredible artist with an inspiring love for Jesus and a heart for seeking beauty where truth and grace collide. Each week, she will be releasing a floral art print that captures the heart of each promise. Our hope is that mamas would download these weekly prints as a way to reflect on the weekly promise and embrace the scripture that reminds us of each truth.
Strength | Rose
Follow along with Annalisa as she shares more beautiful artwork and inspiring words on Instagram and at annalisavsawtell.com.
Join us for this ten week series as we unpack each one of these 10 Bible Promises for Mamas! If you missed the introduction to the series, click here to read. God has promised us peace, joy, presence, strength, guidance, deliverance, rest, purpose, mercy and hope in all things. I pray that His word is our stronghold and His promise is our hope. I’m praying for you, mama!
