God’s Got This: Mothering as a First-Generation Christian
As the grandmother of seven grandchildren, I’m a “wanna-be Lois.” Lois was grandmother to Timothy of the New Testament. She had a profound spiritual impact on Timothy according to 2 Timothy 1:5, where the apostle Paul encourages him, “I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and now, I am convinced, is in you also.” Similarly, many Christian moms long to be a “Eunice”—to pass on their “sincere faith” to their children. But sometimes, we face motherhood without a faith-training dynamic-duo in our background and enter motherhood as a first-generation believer—a “wanna-be Eunice,” without a Lois.
This was the case for both of my parents. My mother and father each came to know Christ through influences outside of their families. For the majority of their youth, neither Mom nor Dad were exposed to the truths of God or introduced to the scriptures in their home. It wasn’t until later in life that my grandparents also came to faith in Christ and shared a love of the word and for the church with my parents.
The absence of childhood biblical teaching and of Christ-centered parenting models can lead to insecurities in the most important realm of Christian parenting—raising our children in the Lord. I’m sure my own parents faced these doubts, but they approached their first-generation parenting status faithfully. And the way they organized our lives positioned us to grow in the Lord.
Positioned to Grow
My parents immersed themselves and our family in our local church. While both my parents were involved in our family-owned grocery store, the schools, the community, and friendships through those avenues, the church was our family’s mainstay. Surrounded by believers of all ages, my parents positioned themselves to learn from others, and they, in turn, taught both adults and children.
Their faith transferred from the walls of the church to the walls of our home. Their home lifestyle was synonymous with their church lifestyle, and the word was for Monday–Saturday as well as Sunday. I often came home from school to find my mom memorizing scripture with small group friends. I regularly found my dad studying his Bible when I walked into his office at our grocery store. Their commitment to learning and understanding the word allowed them to pass on correct theology.
Relationships in the church were prioritized amidst the demands of an active household. My siblings and I grew up around the community of believers beyond Sunday. Church families were frequently in our home. Through the reciprocated hospitality of my parents and their friends, we witnessed many Christian families in action, which added to the foundation our parents were building.
Mom and Dad stewarded and served with their spiritual gifts. Dad served as an elder, teacher, and administrator, and Mom was active in the worship ministry and in teaching. Even though it was costly, they postured themselves to learn, grow, and serve. The result was a security in their adoption into God’s family and a God-based confidence that allowed them to lead our entire family to a relationship with Jesus.
Growing up, the fact that they were first-generation Christians was never apparent to me. It’s as if they knew that as long as they relied completely on God and situated themselves under his wing and authority, God would lead them through the ups and downs of raising kids. Their “God’s got this” mindset is an outlook that can benefit all moms, whether we come from a Christ-following line that traces back to the Reformation, or we’re the forerunners of Christianity in our ancestry.
God’s Got This
In this day of “Momma, you’ve got this!” it’s imperative to remember that our “help comes from the Lord” (Ps. 121:2). A heritage of faithful God-followers is a blessing, but our heritage will not save us or get us through the trenches of motherhood. Only the God to whom our heritage points can do that. As 1 Peter 4:11 emphasizes, “if anyone serves, let it be from the strength God provides, so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ in everything.” There is no lack of serving in motherhood, and our own mustered up “Momma strength” will only last so long.
First-generation Christian moms can find hope for their insecurities when “God’s got this” becomes the refrain we sing in our hearts and minds. Colossians 1:29 reminds us that though our resources may be limited, “[we] labor for this, striving with his strength that works powerfully in [us]” (emphasis mine). For every mom—the first-generation Christian or tenth-generation Christian—it’s in his strength and his energy that we faithfully train our children in the Lord.
Like my own first-generation Christian parents, our ability lies in the Lord’s “vast strength” (Eph. 6:10). Regardless of whether the pages of our Bible are still stuck-together and full of new Bible smell, or if we inherited our great-grandmother’s tattered and torn, highlighted Bible, we can parent and pass on the gospel by his vast strength! There is hope for every generation of moms, because God is the God over each generation.
If we look ahead rather than behind and position ourselves to live, learn, and serve amongst a community of believers, we can launch a new era in our ancestry. We can lay a God-based foundation for generations to come. Someday may it be said of our children and grandchildren that their faith “first lived in their mother or grandmother.”
