When You’re Raising Big Kids, God Finds You Where You’re At

When you’re a mom of big kids, God finds you where you’re at.

Think about Elijah when he stood on the mountain, and God promised to pass by. Winds swirled, earthquakes shook, fire sizzled, and yet, that’s not where God spoke to Elijah.

God talked to him through the whisper. (1 Kings 19:11-13)

Mommas, we stand on our own mountains.

And our lives swirl, shake, and sizzle. But if we pause for just a sliver of a second – here or there, there is no formula – God will reveal himself to us. His words will press a feeling in our inmost beings, and we will know we are found.

The winds frantically carry me into the parking lot. I park and rush to field 10. My kid-taxi-services-everyone-needs-to-be-different-places-at-once rage on steroids, and I thought I was late, but the game’s still going. I sink into the grass and watch, not the soccer players, but the ref, my teenage son. The sunshine, the air, the coolness, I feel my body relax like a balloon seeping out air, and I hear God say, “Look at your boy making those calls with confidence. Isn’t he just such an awesome son? Aren’t you so proud?” And my heart feels gratitude.

My whole day shakes, but nothing thunders quite like the evening. A conversation that started healthy with my big kid goes awry, and I can’t seem to recover.

Later, I lay my head on my pillow knowing full well I will not sleep. The morning light beckons me out from under my covers. The kitchen is quiet, the coffee maker whirls, I pull a yogurt from the fridge, and in the quiet, I feel God say, “This is a new day. You’ve got this. I’m right there with you. It’s going to be okay.” And my heart feels peace.

My life sizzles, reds and oranges dance around me: I need to call insurance; I should get after my lesson planning for work; I forget again to dethaw the chicken I need right now to make dinner. A song cuts through the airway, melody cooling the temperature, rhythm slowing my thoughts. The words drift over me, my body unclenches, I sink into the moment, and right there in the kitchen while running warm water over the meat, I feel God say, “You are doing great. You are so very cherished. I delight in calling you mine.” And my heart feels loved.

When you are raising big kids, your life constantly hammers at you. You are at the peak of midlife, your responsibilities reign, nothing lets up, it all swirls, shakes, and sizzles.

But take heart, my friend, God is there too.

He’s fully aware of who you are, your inmost fears and desires.

He knows your people and cherishes them deeply.

He looks out at your whole situation with discernment and authority.

And then when the air swirls, and the ground rumbles, and heat dances around you, he cuts through the noise with a whisper.

You will then feel.

Gratitude.

Peace.

Love.

Him.

You don’t have to go anywhere special or do anything different, you just got to pause and notice. Because when you’re a mom of big kids, God finds you where you’re at.

Join this community of moms raising big kids…

Your brain bounces between your day at work, what time(s) your kids need to be at practice, your teen’s missing school assignments, that you haven’t called your mom lately, the load of the laundry to be switched, “What’s for dinner?” and “Why are 3 of my brain-tabs frozen?”

You are raising tweens and teens and college-age kids – the unique parenting phase where everything gets easier…and harder.

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Cheryl Donely

Cheryl is a mom of 3 boys, wife, speaker, high school teacher, and author of Empowered Moms & Kids. She has a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and is passionate about learning and teaching. On www.empoweredmomsandkids.com you’ll find inspiration and encouragement for moms raising tweens and/or teens. Read more in the “about” section of this page.