I'm on a trip to London, and while I'm gone have asked a few friends to share with you on my blog.  These ladies are some of my favorite ladies ever and have much wisdom and love to share.  This is my friend Melissa and I met her pretty quickly after moving to Austin and we have been great friends ever since!  She's super fun and loves Jesus greatly.  She has four kids and they are ALL girls.  Bless her heart!  Enjoy her words and leave her a comment to encourage her!

Raising four girls scares me to death. It is an honor to be given the gift of being their mom. But it scares me to death. I know I’m going to mess up. When I mess up, will that screw up their life?  Will I make the wrong decisions? How will those bad decisions affect them? Will I be kind to them? Love them well? Teach them what God desires for them as women of God? Will I set a poor example of that for them? Do I model loving my husband well so that they learn how to love their husband? Do I lash out at them in anger when I’m stressed? Am I a good listener? Do they see me pray a lot? Does my struggle with discontentment overflow into their lives? Do they know I love them? Am I teaching them that their identity is not in who the world says they are, but in whom God says they are? Have I taught them to be kind to people and to be a good friend to their friends? Am I being the mom God created me to be? Do I model humility and patience?

I wrote a letter to my four girls, hoping that one day they will read it, know my desire to be the best mom I can be and think “this is exactly how I remember my mom”.

Letter to my girls:

Dear Jessica, Ava, Betsy and Mary Jones,

I love the four of you more than I could ever express in words so I'm praying that over your lifetime, my actions will show you.

I hope you remember me for always hugging you, telling you how beautiful you are and how proud I am of you. I hope you remember me reminding you that beauty of the spirit is more important than beauty of appearance. I hope you see me strive to model that and not just say it. I hope you will all feel comfortable talking to me when you are going through tough times and that I was remembered for being a good listener, not just an advice giver. I hope you will come to me when you need prayer. I hope you will trust me and feel safe with me.

I hope you remember me always loving and serving your father well and that from seeing that, you are able to love and serve your husband well. 

I can promise you there will be hard times. You will cry over heartbreak, laugh so hard with friends you almost pee your pants, feel butterflies over a boy. There will be times you feel insecure. Times you feel overwhelmed. Times you feel sad. Times you feel left out. Times you will feel confused. 

I am dreading the day I see you heartbroken over a boy. Or crying quiet tears in your room over someone talking about you. I'm praying that I will be graceful in how I love you in those moments.

You will most likely play sports, an instrument, sing in the choir or cheer on your school teams. You will have prom to attend. Homecoming. Football games. Parties. 

I can promise you that I will love you through all of these things. I can also promise you that I will mess up. I will make the wrong decision. I will hurt your feelings and have to ask for forgiveness. But at the heart of it all…I will love you.

I am praying that along with all of these normal things you will experience, that through it all, you are learning to grasp God's love for you and what the gospel means. This is my strongest prayer for you. It is the most important lesson in life. 

I pray that one day I am not just your mother but also your friend.

My heart is busting at the seams with love for you four girls.

Mom

Melissa is wife to Nate. Mom to Jessica, Ava, Betsy and Mary Jones. Lover of Jesus, family, Mexican Martinis and shoes. I've been showered with grace and thankful for it!

You can follower her via her blog, facebook, or twitter.