Practicing, Not Perfecting Mothering with Lori Thurston

If Mother’s Day is hard for you, know that you’re not alone! Mother’s Day is this week and while it’s a day to honor and celebrate moms—it’s not always a happy day. In an article from Sharon Eubank titled, "The Idea of 'Mothers in Zion' Made Me Mad—Until I Learned What It Meant" she said, “Mother’s Day … is often an emotional and spiritual minefield for almost everyone: Women who have no children, or who wanted more children, or maybe different children. Women who feel they are failing, or that someone failed them, or that failure is around the corner. Women who wished they were free to mother, or feel cut off from their mothers, or never had the mother they wanted, or can’t be the mother they want to be.” 

 

"This life is practice mothering, not to perfect it."

 

Joining Kathryn in this episode is Lori Thurston. Lori and her husband Bob are preparing to serve a service mission in Pakistan.

 

Top takeaways from this episode:

• No matter the circumstance you are in--a mom with many children, no children, mixed families, single mothers--you can learn the lessons of motherhood.
• Mother is both a noun and an adjective. Whether or not you have birthed children, you are able to mother God's children as part of your divine role here on earth.
• Our Heavenly Parents see all of eternity before us, so we have all of eternity to perfect mothering.
• The Savior has many qualities of a mother, and we can become more like the Savior as we participate in this mother-work.

 

Small and simple challenge: Prayerfully consider who it is in your life that has helped to mother you or your community that isn’t already on your mother’s day list. Thank them for the mothering that they do that is unconventional. Let them know that they were helpful in mothering.

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