15 Young christian mom challenges and how to overcome them
As a young christian mom there are many things up against us. This article is about the challenges many young christian moms face, and how to overcome them with Jesus!
1. Young christian mom challenges: Feeling touched out
It’s a real thing. Our kids and husbands mean well by their touch, and sometimes as mamas we have trouble realizing it. Nursing a baby, cuddles, hugs, constant requests from one or multiple kids are all blessings AND some blessings can be overwhelming. When you’re feeling touched out try leaning into the touch. Instead of pushing the hug away from your husband, hug him… and do it for longer than you intended. You’ll be happy you did so!
If you’re really not up for a hug or any touch at the moment, explain to your husband or kids how to you feel. Go a step further and tell them what they can do, so that you don’t feel that way. You can also remove yourself for a second to breathe. Even Jesus took time away. 🙂
2.Second Guessing your boundaries
As a young christian mom, our household rules may not look like others in the world. They may not even look like others in our own church- that’s okay. The beautiful thing is that God created you and your husband to establish the boundaries in your home.
Joshua 24:15: “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
Explain to your kids why you have certain “rules” in your home, and be an example of honoring the rules you’ve set. If it aligns with His word, and you are convicted by it theres no need to second guess it. God sees and knows your heart more than anyone else.
3. Comparison
We often see the highlights of most peoples lives. It’s easy as a young mom to get caught up in things that don’t really matter. It’s easy to seek out others for advice and hacks, but truly God just wants us to be with Him and bring our kids along.
When you find yourself comparing your motherhood or children ask yourself -“Does God care about this?” ,”Am I viewing my motherhood and children the way God views it?. Don’t let your joy be taken away by all of the outside noise!
4. Not enjoying every moment
Motherhood is truly a blessing. Motherhood is work. Sometimes everyday at work, isn’t always enjoyable but it needs to be done. Just because you aren’t enjoying a particular moment or season dosen’t mean you’re a bad mom! Some moms LOVE pregnancy, some moms can’t wait for it to be done. Some LOVE nursing, some don’t and still do it. Sometimes the holy work is the hardest work- and that’s okay.
It’s okay to admit you aren’t enjoying a particular season. Maybe tell a close mom friend how you feel. She may have been in that stage and can encourage you. Sometimes it just feels good to be heard.
5. Feeling “Too Young” AKA don’t know what you’re doing!!
You really don’t know, until you know. As a young christian mom it can sometimes feel like you are growing up with your kids. This can make you feel inadequate in your role as a mother. You start second guessing yourself and even wonder if you are fit for the role. “Is this too much for me to handle?!”
As young mamas in this world today we have all the tools we need to succeed in our motherhood. God even calls us to have childlike faith, and we have the honor of also teaching our kids as we learn more about HIM.
1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV): “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity”
God knew you would be a mom at this age, so he has prepared you for it. The younger we have the kids, the more time we have to sow into their lives!
6. Not knowing your season
A clean house all day, 1,000 hours outside, bread making or waking up at 5AM may not all fit in your season of life right now and that’s okay. As a young christian mom we are often told because we are young we should do as much as we can. Sometimes rest needs to override our desires, otherwise it can lead to mom burnout.
Establish your priorities in busy seasons. What can you say ” yes” and “no” to? it may change often. Make time for rest in every season of motherhood.
7. Loosing yourself in motherhood
As a mom, it’s easy to put yourself on the backburner. We often put our interests aside to tend to our children. Overtime this can lead to the feeling of loosing yourself. First off mama, you haven’t lost yourself , God has just made a new version of yourself. It’s a blessing we aren’t the same people we were before we had kids. In many ways, motherhood makes us better.
If you feel like you’ve lost yourself in motherhood try taking on a hobby that doesn’t take much mental space, but is fulfilling to you. Here are some hobbies:
- Bread making
- Embroidery
- Cricut Projects
- Painting Dishes
- A good book series
- Fitness
8. young christian mom struggles: Mom Guilt
As mamas, many times we will miss the mark. We often strive for balance, and when things don’t feel balanced we feel guilty about it. Feeling like we aren’t spending enough time with our kids, how much screen time they are getting, what their diets look like, their behavior- these are all things we tend to think about at some point of the day. On top of that we have social media telling us all the right and wrong things to do and it can all feel SO overwhelming.
Who is the loudest voice in your ear today? Is it Jesus or your toughest critic? Embrace the imperfect moments, and the not-so-good days. Rejoice in the fact that when you seek God first, everything else will fall into place. Mother hood is a happy juggling act.
9. Lack of a village
We are not meant to do motherhood alone. As young mamas, we need community to encourage us, share experiences, and pray alongside us.
If you’re feeling a lack of a village try hosting a mom’s bible study, or schedule playdates often. This can keep you connected with other believing mamas!
10. Putting Husband First
Jesus. Husband. Kids. In that order. In the day to day our kids like to believe it’s the other way around LOL. It’s important for our kids to see the fruit of a healthy marriage.
Set boundaries in your home that prioritize your marriage. When your husband comes home from work try to be the first to greet him. Doing things like this can shift your home for the better. Our kids need to know that mommy and daddy come before them, and that it honors God to do so.
11. Keeping up with the home
Keeping up with all of the tasks of the home is a full time job itself. Out of all the things our kids will remember do you think they will remember dishes being in the sink at night? NO! Our kids will remember the time you spent with them , the games you played, the experiences you had together.
Timers are great tool to give structure in your day. Put on 15 minute timers during the day to clean. Once the timer is done, move on.
12. Our kids age gaps/ Number of kids
If we had a dollar for every time we’ve been asked if we are having more kids, we’d be millionaires! This one might sound silly, but it’s a true concern especially for a young christian mom. Do we have children back to back? Should we space them apart? Do we want more? We get into our heads and if we aren’t careful.
God already knows the amount of kids, and the timing of them. We just need to be present with the children we are blessed with now, and trust that he knows the rest.
14. Not having time for friendships
Are you the friend that takes 3 business days to respond? Sometimes as a young mama it can be hard to keep up with friendships, but especially ones that aren’t in the same season of life as you. It’s important to embrace all friendships-younger, older and ones in the same season. Theres always something to learn from one another.
You can be encouragement to your single friend, or friends with no kids. Invite them to play dates with you! Don’t feel like just because you aren’t in the same season, you can’t enjoy each other.
15. Young christian mom challenges: Not restinG
Sometimes our rest gets sacrificed for a cleaner home, or errands or whatever else on the to-do list. Prioritize your rest as a mama. Make sure you have a day that you can reset. Make sure you get to read the word, and take care of yourself. It may look different with kids, but with some tweaking it’s possible.
What are some of the biggest struggles you’ve had as a young christian mama. What encouragement can you give to others? You were meant to do this, mama!