September 14, 2022 – When Mamas Cry

Hey, Mama!

Gena Suarez, Publisher of TOS

Dry Your Tears; Joy Is Coming

Hey Mama,

You’re crying again. God gave us tears as a release. His word says, however, that in Heaven there will be no more tears, no more grief, no more pain. He will wipe all your tears away.

It’s hard lately. Tears flow. Grief fills you. Heartsick. But keep your eyes on the One who owns the cattle on a thousand hills. The One who steers the hearts of kings. You are His. He has not forgotten you. He still steers hearts.

Spend some time before the King of kings, praying, asking Him to be near you. He draws near; He promises to pull you in if we are seeking Him. He loves His own. I hope this encourages you. You can find some more encouragement by reading these articles from The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine:

Facing Affliction With the Faith of a Mustard Seed by Andrea Newitt
When You Feel Alone (And You Will) by Deb Wuehler
A Journey in the Garden by Heather Batchelder

Mama, do not grow weary. It’s easy to get pulled into the moment or a season full of trials. But what is waiting for you after it runs its course? JOY. Your Savior created you for things you can’t even fathom, to be joyful and happy as you exist forever with the family of God. One day, every tear will be wiped away. Grief will end. Sadness will dissipate and be a distant memory and you will realize finally what the plan always was. You were created for JOY and to be with the Lord for eternity. Happiness is your future.

Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know. – Jeremiah 33:3

So, dry your tears, Mama. Take joy in the One who loves you. And if you need to cry, do it. He gave you that release. Keep walking, Mama. His hand is on your head today.

“As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth” Job 19:25, NASB.

~gena

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Mercy Every Minute

Deborah Wuehler, TOS Senior Editor

Bottled Up Tears

In our joyful days, and in our days of unabated tears, we thank God for Who He is, what He has done, and what He will do. The things you are going through now will one day be called the “former things” that will pass away, and there will truly and certainly be a day when we will see Jesus, face-to-face. Our tears will be exchanged for joy.

In the meantime, we must be strong and wise and prayerful. And on those days when the tears want to flow, don’t bottle up those tears, let them flow to be caught in God’s own bottle. Release them and whatever caused them to His keeping. Psalm 56: 8-11 says, “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

God is for you and with you in every kind of grief or tears of frustration. He is the “fourth man in the fire” with you. You can trust Him without fear. There is nothing this side of eternity that can harm you if you are His.

It is true that no one knows our sorrow like Christ. He not only is acquainted with our grief; He says that he bears our grief and carries our sorrow as proclaimed in Isaiah 53: “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows.”

These tearful times draw us closer to the Lord through fellowship with Him in His sufferings (Philippians 3:10; 1 Peter 4:13) by understanding His suffering more fully and allowing him to carry us through ours.

You’ll find a similar message in these articles from The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine:

Homeschooling Through the Storms by Flossie Cusick
Corrie ten Boom: The Woman Who Looked to Jesus from Within a Concentration Camp by Bonnie Rose Hudson
The Empty School by Joan Thompson

When the tears come, don’t withdraw from life; draw close to Christ and allow Him to bear and carry your afflictions. He will soon wipe away all tears from our eyes. Hold on to the hem of His garment until that time.

 “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

Persevere! Hang on tightly to Jesus Christ through every tear-filled season of life. Bring your children with you to the Throne of Grace where you will find His freely offered divine help. He is with you; He sees you as you keep His children Home. Where They Belong.

I pray for you all often. Please let me know if there is anything I can pray specifically for you.

Email dwuehler@theoldschoolhouse.com

~Deborah

Roger Smith

Pillar of Knowledge
Roger Smith – The Window of the Soul

In pain and frustration, tears of anguish burst forth. My wife, six-months pregnant with our third child, slipped in the doorway of our tiny rental trailer and fell on the threshold. My emotional stupor induced by medical residency caused me to sit numbly on the swing as our four-year-old jumped into action.

“Don’t cry Mama, I’ll put a Band-Aid on it!”

He tenderly touched her, producing more tears. Her protruding belly and wounded spirit made it nearly impossible to get up.

I was not a model husband in those difficult days.

The eye is not just, as the saying goes, “the window of the soul” that lets things in, but also the surface through which the emotion of life comes out—joy, pain, loss, fear, frustration, and feelings of abandonment. All can spill over the eyelashes, sometimes in relief, sometimes in excess. But never without meaning.

Husbands need to notice, understand, and show kindness to the one crying. Mamas need to identify the triggers, which are important to understand and address. And children should know that sometimes tears spring out of love for them . . . even if they try to help with a Band-Aid.

About the author

Dr. Roger Smith is a family doctor in rural Louisiana, where he and his wife, Jan, raised four adventurous children who are all grown, making their own mark in the world. He speaks and writes on parenting issues and produces brief videos that can be found on Facebook @ParentingMattersNow.

You’re not alone, Mama! Everyone faces rough spots along the way. Whether struggling to find time to pray, to not compare to other homeschool families, or to homeschool super-active children, sometimes it’s difficult to keep homeschooling while overwhelmed. Be encouraged by Nancy Fileccia’s series of articles on Homeschooling Through the Rough Spots to help you continue on the journey. You’ll find this course and more in the Just for Parents page at SchoolhouseTeachers.com