In our ministry with women who are also moms, what do they need? As we consider topics for small groups, studies to do, or mentoring opportunities with moms, what is their greatest need?
Perhaps there’s a common need for godly parenting advice. Or maybe moms just need encouragement during a season of life that is exhausting and depleting on all levels. Maybe their common need is help with navigating all the challenges that come with balancing work, family, and other life demands.
While all these concerns are important and while they often rise to the top of the need list for many moms, what they need most is Jesus Christ. They need to be pointed to their Savior. They need the hope of the gospel.
Moms Need the Good News
All moms have challenges and difficulties in motherhood. They vary in degree and length and from one mom to the next. One mom may have a child with a unique need which consumes her time and energy. Another mom may face the challenge of mothering while also dealing with her chronic health problems. For some moms, there are days when they just don’t know what to do; they feel their lack of wisdom. Some days, motherhood is simply overwhelming, and moms don’t have the strength to do what must be done. They feel stretched and pulled in many directions. All moms have days when they simply feel weak and insufficient or days when motherhood is downright hard.
But no matter what each mom’s story or experience is, one thing is the same for all: their need for Jesus.
The gospel is the good news of who Jesus is and what He came to do. The word gospel means just that: “good news.” Often, we think of the gospel as the story of what happened when Jesus died on the cross for our sins. It certainly isn’t less than that. But it’s also so much more.
The gospel is the answer to our greatest problem and our deepest need. Because of sin, we were in enmity with God and separated from Him. For centuries, God’s people made sacrifices to pay for their sin. Those sacrifices pointed to their need for a final and complete once-and-for-all sacrifice. That came in the person and work of Jesus Christ. God Himself stepped into human flesh and lived the perfect life we could not live. He took on our sins at the cross as the perfect Lamb of God in our place. He bore the punishment we deserved. Three days later He rose from the dead because the grave could not keep Him. He later ascended into heaven where He rules and reigns and intercedes on our behalf. Through faith in who Jesus is and what He did for us, we are saved from sin and have the hope and promise of eternal life. This is good news!
Yet it’s good news we need not just at the moment of our salvation; it’s good news we need every moment of our lives.
- We need the good news when we’ve sinned so we can turn to the cross and appropriate in confession and repentance all that Christ has done for us and receive forgiveness.
- We need the good news when we face suffering so that we can remember that we are not alone, for our Savior is the Suffering Servant who faced the greatest suffering so we wouldn’t have to.
- We need the good news when life is hard and we just don’t know what to do so we can turn to Him who is wisdom incarnate (Col. 2:3).
- We need the good news when we worry and fear so we can remember we’ve been adopted into the family of God through the blood of Christ and therefore have a Father in heaven who cares for us and meets all our needs.
What this means is, the truth of who Jesus is and what He has done for us doesn’t only save us for eternity (as major as that already is!); it also transforms our daily lives in the here and now. The gospel impacts how we work, how we play, how we interact with others, how we face challenges, and how we suffer. It transforms how we respond to our sin and to the sin of others. It gives us hope when we are hopeless, peace when we are fearful, and joy when we are despairing.
That’s why moms need the good news of the gospel.
The Gospel in Moms Ministry
What does this mean for those of us who serve in ministry? How does the gospel impact the topics we study, the discussions we have, and the mentoring we do?
It means the good news of who Jesus is and what He came to do should be front and center in our ministry with moms. Our ministry efforts should be Christ-centered. All that we teach, disciple, and discuss should ultimately point to Him.
Now this doesn’t mean there’s no room to talk about parenting issues. It doesn’t mean we don’t help moms think through how to practically juggle all their cares and responsibilities. It doesn’t mean we don’t talk about their everyday challenges. What it does mean is that we need to remember that the gospel has something to say to every mom, no matter her circumstances, no matter the season. In every moment—joyous or painful, exciting or mundane, easy or difficult—the gospel provides moms with real and lasting hope. The truth of who Jesus is and what He came to do through His life, death, resurrection, and ascension intersects with our daily lives and brings the life-giving hope moms need.
This means that the gospel should be the common thread woven throughout our ministries to moms.
Gospel Conversations with Moms
What might this look like? When moms share about the challenges in their day, we point them to their hope in the gospel. We ask questions like:
- In this challenging moment, what does the gospel have to say to you? How does what Jesus did for you provide hope in this trial you are in right now?
- In your weakness and helplessness as a mom, how does the perfect life Jesus lived for you meet you where you are and provide real, lasting hope?
- In your sinful responses to your child today, how does Jesus’ sacrificial death cover your sin?
- What does Jesus’ resurrection and His promise to make all things new say to your child’s battle with sin today?
- How does the gospel speak to your worries about your children? How can you find hope in your adoption as God’s child through the blood of Christ?
- How does Jesus’ ascension into heaven, where He sits at the right hand of God, meet you in this day when everything seems to be going wrong and the chaos is overwhelming?
The truth is, we all need the gospel. It is the good news that gives us hope for eternity; it’s also good news for the here and now. As we work with moms, let us point them to who Jesus is and what He came to do. Let us help them find their real and lasting hope in Him.