God has the genuine, the devil has the counterfeit. This is true in every situation. The devil hates every plan and purpose of God and therefore seeks to deceive people and give them a counterfeit of the real. Often the counterfeit looks very good, especially to the wise of this world, but God laughs at the wisdom of man. It is foolishness in His eyes.
Motherhood is God’s genuine plan for caring for children—for all generations. What do I mean by motherhood? To embrace it with your whole heart. To receive with joy each little baby God sovereignly gives to you. True motherhood does not give away a baby, toddler, or young child to someone else to raise. This is the devil’s counterfeit.
And yet it is accepted as norm in our society today. Truly we have turned things upside down. God says these very words in Isaiah 29:16 (ESV): “You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, ‘He did not make me’; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?”
No one can mother a baby like the true mother. Day care workers can be conscientious to protect, feed, and care for babies and young children, but they do not intuitively understand the inner needs of the child. They don’t even have the hormones of oxytocin and prolactin filling them with motherliness. In fact, they are doing it for pay!
Oh, there is a great difference when we do something for pay than when we do it instinctively. I remember watching my daughter, Serene, nurture her last baby, Solly. She mothered her to pieces. Nursed her constantly. She was rarely out of her arms or her baby carrier. When she was on her lap, she was talking to her, adoring her, squeezing her fat little thighs, massaging her, and doting on her.
And then she had all her siblings vying to hold her, laugh and smile at her, and love her. A baby in a day care is watched over, but never gets this amount of love and attention. And it is all for delight and love. The mother isn’t dreaming of money.
Job 7:2 talks about the employed person who waits for his or her wages. A day care worker can do her work diligently, but ultimately, they do it for pay. They wouldn’t be there if they weren’t getting paid. Conversely, the mother nurtures out of her mothering anointing. Jesus also speaks of the difference between the hired worker and the true shepherd in John 10:11-13. The true shepherd gives his life for the sheep whereas the hired worker does it for pay.
Let’s not get sucked into the deception of this society. There’s just too much deception around. Let’s stand up for the real and genuine, even if we need to sacrifice and go without!
Love to you today,
Nancy Campbell
Painting by Annie Henrie Nader