Welcome back to another week of working through the Mom Set Free Bible Study. I’ve gotten so far behind in basically everything since the beginning of December. I thought January would allow me to catch up & return to slower living, but it’s been somehow ended up just as busy for me as I’ve been working an almost full time schedule again. Fingers crossed for February! This chapter went deep and with how busy I’ve been I decided to take my time and not to rush it just to get through it “on time.”

I feel like this week’s challenge really helped me to open my eyes and come to terms with certain things.

Read Ephesians 1:17-19

Paul prayed that God would give “The Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that,” we may: know Him better.

What 3 things did Paul pray for the Ephesians to know in verses 18-19?

1. The HOPE to which He has called you
2. The RICHES of His glorious inheritance
3. His incomparably great POWER

How have you tended to think about God’s sovereignty? How has your understanding of God’s sovereignty impacted the way you parent?

Truthfully, I haven’t been living with this in mind and that feels really difficult to admit for some reason. I have not been putting God first. I think that it has impacted me negatively. I have been leading by my example and not by God’s. I need to do a better job in this area.

Look up the following verses, and note what they have to say about God’s power.

I was planned by God and given a plan to follow out long before I was Earth-side.

I may make the plans for my life based on what matters to me, but the plans are by God’s design. He is leading me down the paths I need to go down. My passions and interests are not random, they were chosen by His plan for my purpose.

I am human and it is easy for me to get lost in the way that I think I should live my life instead of living the life that God has designed for me. His plan for me is far greater than anything I could come up with on my own. Every single step in life is part of His plan and is all working together for His greater good. I need to stop looking at God based on my level, because he is not on my level – He is far beyond anything I could imagine.

When He created the world, He created me too. I was designed for great things because of Him, because He sees me as a necessary part of his overall plan for the world.

He is everything. The before, the during, and the after.

Read Matthew 7:9-11

Sometimes we view God as someone who wants to take things away from us. How does this passage refute that lie?

I don’t think he wants to take things away from us, but sometimes what we think that we want for ourselves isn’t what is actually best for us. God knows what is best for us and wants the best for us. He wants to answer our prayers, but we have to ask. We are imperfect parents, but still wish to give our children the best. God who is perfect wants to and has the ability to give even bigger and better gifts than us, but that doesn’t mean giving in to our selfish, materialistic desires.

Over the past year & a half that my husband has been off work, God has shown me time & time again that He will provide. He will take care of us as His children. You have to be willing to surrender though. You have to truly put your faith in Him and believe in your heart that it not only could happen, but will happen – that at the end of the day, everything will be okay. While this year has been a struggle, it has also provided us with many blessings & gifts.

How can we apply this truth to our children?

Know that even when I feel that I can’t provide for my children, that God will help make it happen because he too wants what is best for my (His) children and doesn’t want to see us struggle or fail.

Read Roman’s 8:32

What does this verse reveal about God’s ability to understand the sadness, grief, and even anguish that we experience as parents?

Even as parents, we have to do things that we don’t want to do or have to endure battles that we didn’t see as part of our plan. I think there’s a little bit of comfort in knowing that God too had to give up his son, like I did. It wasn’t part of my plan. It wasn’t how I wanted things to be. He knows how sad I feel over it. He knows how heavy this burden is to carry with me every day, every year. He understands how I feel, when no one else can. God has other plans and even though I don’t know why yet, I have to trust that it is greater than what I want. I need to stop believing that it’s because I am not worthy or good enough, but because God has bigger plans.

What are some of the battles you are facing alongside your children right now that you desperately wish you could fix or control?

As a family, we are fighting a financial battle while my husband is not working. We are facing family drama that has led to a lot of estrangement, and I feel stuck in the middle. As a mother, I’m fighting a battle to be heard and obeyed. I am struggling with being the homemaker, homeschooler, AND worker. I want to come back home where I am most needed and useful, where my children need me. Personal struggles at home. I’m struggling a lot with the situation with my son living with my parents, which effects all my children: one misses out on the amazing experience of growing up with a big family, something I dreamed of as an only child, the rest have to miss out on knowing their brother, and miss out on many experiences that he is presented with as an only child. It breaks my heart that Moses gets sad when I call Kaden my son too, because he truly doesn’t understand.

How do these verses encourage you to breathe hope into those situations?

I am hopeful things are the way they are because something bigger & more beautiful will come from it and that I will be lucky enough to get to see the plan unfold Earth side. Although in my experience, I also know that sometimes pieces of the plan don’t come together without loss, and there is a chance, and fact, that some parts won’t be answered until long after I’m gone. The same way I came long my бабуся left Earth side, but with an important purpose of bridging the gap between the old generation and the new to keep our heritage alive. Or the way Kaden was reconnected with his dad’s side of his family after his dad passed. Parts of my grandchildren’s stories and their children’s stories are already being written today, with each step we take. I just have to keep hope that I’ll get to see as much of God’s plan as possible.

Read Chronicles 20:1-12

How did Jehoshaphat prepare for battle in verse 3?

Seek the Lord

Now record how Jehoshaphat ended his prayer to the Lord in verse 12.

“Our God, will you not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast number that comes to fight against us. We do not know what to do, but we look to you.”

How would this mind-set impact your daily parenting?

When I don’t know what to do, look to God. When the kids aren’t listening or obeying, fighting with each other, look to God. When I feel like I’m failing and I can’t do anything right, look to God. When I feel like I’m both completely outnumbered and all alone, look to God.

Ponder your response to that invitation.

On a scale of 1-5, how difficult is it for you to trust God?:

I’m not sure I can scale that. The closer that I am to Him the more I trust Him, but when I get away from him, so does the trust. I have definitely noticed myself getting further and further since beginning my job. I know I don’t put enough trust in God. I divide between others – the universe, my ancestors... but he even begins his prayer “Lord, God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven, and do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations?” He is the ruler of all kingdoms & my ancestors. I don’t need to split up who to thank. He covers all.

What stories from Scripture, your life, or the lives of those around you that God, not you, is the One holding all things together and can be trusted with your children?

I cannot think of specific stories off of the top of my head, but I know God can be trusted with my children because they are His children first.

Close with prayer

Until next time ♡ Mama Morozov