Strategy #3: Attacking Your Identity (Don't Let the Devil Steal Your Motherhood)

If I was your enemy, I'd DEVALUE your strength and MAGNIFY your insecurities until they 
dominate how you see yourself, disabling and disarming you from fighting back, from being
free, from being who God has created you to be, YOUR CHILDREN'S MOTHER. I'd work hard
to ensure that you never realize what God has given you, THE STRENGTH OF MOTHERHOOD, 
so you'll doubt the power of God within you ~

     This week I have been dealing a lot with identity. My friend and I were working on my official logo (gulp) and all the first ones she showed me were great except that I didn't quiet feel my identity in them. It took a lot of trial and error and back and forth at the drawing board for the logo that was to become my new identity to surface. But with love and a lot of hard work the logo that will be forever (God willing) be Halfway To Sunday Mom was formed. (A quick shout out to Greenlight Graphics for the awesome work!)
     Our identities as mothers work the same way. Most of us don't like feeling like we are labeled "moms" like there is nothing else to us. But the truth is we have many labels (mom, servant, lover, wife, nurse, teacher, cook, cleaner, helper, need I go on?) but as we have been discussing the past two weeks; we are mothers. So motherhood for the time being needs to be a focused identity of who we are. But the devil, using the world to corrupt us, is trying with all his might to make us lose our identity as mothers. With equal rights for the sexes, non sexual orientation, women can do anything men can do lies. Now that in no way means that we should not be able to work or have hobbies or travel and so on. But if we chose to have children our identity is motherhood not CEO of a large company that steals all our time away from our family. Hope that makes a lot of sense. Just because women can do what men can do doesn't mean we should be. If you are feeling like being a mother is something your doing on the side, what negative identities is the devil whispering in your ear (Your job is more important, you deserve to go out and party still, you aren't their slave)? What negative identities is the world yelling at you (their teachers are making sure they are doing well, kids need their independence, if you want them to be happy buy them things)? What negative identities are friends and family telling you (you shouldn't be handling them that way, let them find themselves, you are over disciplining them, you are under disciplining them)? Have you let everyone crack away at pieces of your identity until you can't even tell what direction you are suppose to be going anymore?

    So how do we fight back against this attack? We need God and us to stamp what our TRUE identities are repeatedly onto our hearts. Key word there being repeatedly. Fervent prayer keeps our identity in FOCUS! It reminds us of who we really are and taps into the power we really have in Christ to be the mothers we are called to be. ~ Fervent 
     To accomplish this try following these 4 steps and remember this will take time and practice to turn it into habit.  

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Step 1: Prayer,are you starting to see a pattern?

When you pray, thank God for your specific traits He has given you to burn them on your heart, spirit and soul. If you do this then the devil loses the upper edge. You will see him try to creep in and can stop him before he breaks through.
1 Corinthians 15:57 - Thank God that he gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Step 2: Know the lies

If you have watched "Finding Dory" this movie is a great example. In the beginning her short term memory allows negative thoughts to creep in BUT by the end of the movie, despite still having short term memory she knows the lies when they try to creep in and is QUICK and STERN to remove those lies from her thoughts. We can't change the flaws in us and we can't forget them either, because knowing them allows us to stay focused on our true identities. And when those flaws do try to break into our thoughts we are QUICK and STERN to tell them to GET OUT!!!
Proverbs 10:9 - Whoever lives honestly will live securely, but whoever lives dishonestly WILL be found out.

Step 3: Know your strengths

Write them down! Tell yourself WHO you are during the day. When someone complements you on how well your children are, how well you're doing as a mother, how they don't know how you do it; ANY kind of complement DON'T DOWNPLAY IT!!! We need to learn to accept the Godwinks
we get throughout the day from people. We need that boost, that pep to put back in our step. 
Isaiah 12:2 - Look! God is my Savior. I am confident and unafraid, because the Lord is my strength and my song. He is my Savior.

Step 4: Put on your Belt Of Truth

Put on YOUR belt of TRUTH:  AKA - A girdle, which is worn close to the body with all the other pieces of our armor tucked into it and held together. If we do this we will have our truths right next to us before we go into our daily battles. If we do this, no matter what is against us, it will be no match for the power and authority we will poses through Him. To truly know theses truths makes us dangerous to the enemy. It means even on our bad days the lies will not be able to take us down.
Philippians 4:8-9 - Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honorable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. Practice what you've learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.

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     As mothers we need to be PROUD of the identity that is motherhood. Not every women out there will get that identity even though she may cry herself asleep wishing that she could. We were given a gift (or in my case gifts) and we should be proud and thankful we were chosen for those gifts. So the next time someone tries to put a break in your identity, a crack in your love of motherhood you stop it by giving praise for the wonderful mini yous. You are training up the future parents of this world and that is something you need to be able to stand tall about. 

Isaiah 49: 16 - See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me ~