Train the young women to love their husbands and children. To be self controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their husbands, that the word of God might not be reviled. Titus 2:4-5

We all want it, to be important, to matter. To feel like we are making a difference in the world. Or at least I did…

I wanted to feel significant. I wanted my one and only life to count for something. This fact became glaringly obvious to me the day that my kids had to enter a writing contest in honor of Martin Luther King Day for school. The assignment was for them to write about someone who is a “Servant Leader.” All of my kids chose to write about the same person, their dad. Of course they did, my husband is amazing! He was the obvious choice. He has a cool job. He has a way more interesting life than me. He works in law enforcement and gets to do exciting things- like go on stakeouts and put bad guys in jail. Truth be told, I’m jealous of his job.

Me, I’m just a stay-at-home mom. When my husband and I meet new people and I tell them what “I do” with my time you can see their eyes almost instantly glaze over with boredom while moving on to ask my husband what he does. As he tells them what his position is, their faces light up with interest, tell me more! “I bet you’ve got some good stories!” My husband is instantly the cool kid in the room while I fade into the background becoming little more than his shadow.

Moms, we can feel like that sometimes; like the people in the background on the stage of life. The unsung hero. The un-noticed one. We’re the unseen. Working hard at helping everyone else succeed.

But the truth is that God sees you. Every selfless act. Every time you laid down what you wanted to do so that the other person could get what they wanted. Letting any selfish ambition fall to the wayside. Every sleepless night and ho-hum day. You keep going. You stay faithful to the call of motherhood. Waking every morning and caring for your family. Choosing to be expectant and thankful for the gift of children to raise. Because in the grand scheme of things, titles and prestige really don’t matter. God and people are what matters. Relationships matter. And if you’re a mom, you get to pour your life into the very things that are close to God’s heart- people, family, children, the next generation. My family has been entrusted to me to care for. That is an honor and gift. Your family has been entrusted to you. Raising them is one of our God-given assignments. Embrace it.

We are raising the next generation and our job may not be glamorous or impressive, but it matters. You were chosen to be the mother of your kids so do it with all of your heart.

Let’s not allow discontentment or the need for significance rob us of today. Enjoy this season. Make the most of it because soon it will pass. You’ll have time to chase your dreams one day but this day lets celebrate motherhood. Lets make memories, have fun and go on adventures with our young ones.

Your time will come, mama. But right now it’s their time. Our children’s time to grow and learn. To be nurtured and loved. They need us. They need you. To kiss their owies and build their confidence. To read them bedtime stories and say prayers.

You can do this mama. For the sake of our children and the sake of our future. You can be the unsung hero.