Today I have been thinking a lot about the mother of Moses.
There isn't too much information about her in the scriptures. We know that her
name was Jochebed, the wife of Amram, and that she had two other children. But
in Exodus chapter two it simply says:
"And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a
daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he
was a goodly child, she hid him three months."
When I read "three months" my heart skipped a
beat. Maybe because I am currently the mother of a three month old. It goes on
and says,
"And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of
bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein;
and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink."
Wow. I just put my sleeping Lucia down in her swing for a nap and I felt a pang of sadness just because she was momentarily not in my arms. And yet this mother, this daughter of Levi, knew that the only way she could save her son was to trust the hand of the Lord and give him up. She humbly laid him in a basket and sent him down the river, knowing that God would protect him.
Yesterday I had my interview for a full-time job that would essentially have me give my baby up for a good part of each day. Just thinking about it makes me heart break a little. And yet, when I think of this unnamed Levite woman, I am given a strength I hadn't felt before. Perhaps this is the Lord's way of testing my trust and faith in Him. He will take care of my daughter while I am away and I will be able to provide for her in a way that I couldn't if I were at home.
It will still be hard. I can imagine that even though the mother of Moses was able to be his nursemaid, it was still hard to concede "mothership" to the daughter of Pharaoh I want every working mother to remember this exemplary woman and the sacrifice she made for her son. We can be strengthened in the Lord in ways we hadn't thought of before.
As a wife who hopes to be a mother, but due to circumstances likely won't be the stay-at-home parent, this really resonates with me. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI found your blog through a link to your letter about the women who are a part of the Ordain Women movement. I have to say that the women of OW would be the first to applaud a post like this and thank you for your thoughtfulness and mindfulness about working through your own personal circumstances with the help of personal revelation. Whether you choose to stay at home or work while you have children is a delicate balance and should be approached mindfully by every family trying to make those types of decisions. I think it's easy to lump the OW into one big group and write us all off, but we are here for all women especially women like you! We are here to support and love you and lift you up as you have to delicately balance a decision that goes against our culture not our religion. Shame from fellow members happens more than I wish it did, and I know this firsthand as a woman with a career in the church. No matter what you decide as a mother we are here to support you, to support you as a stay at home Mom or as a Mom who balances mothering and working. Please give us a chance and try to understand the depth at which we have thought about, fasted about, prayed about, and yearned about this subject. I am happy to answer any questions you have about this movement and you can email me personally if you're interested. Just reply to this comment and we can exchange information. All the love and peace in the world.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment! It is definitely a heart-breaking decision I think for any woman to leave her baby/child/teenager. I'd love to hear more about the group and try to understand things better. My email is hannah.de.cabrera@gmail.com
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