I'm honored to welcome Mackenzie Byersdorf to the blog today. Mackenzie is happily
married to her husband Brian, and is the proud mama of their one-year-old son
Nicholas. Her family has served with Youth With A Mission since 2008, and they
are passionate about Jesus and discipling young people. Mackenzie shares about that realization that many ministry wives have when a first baby changes everything. I know her words will encourage you today.
For most of my life I’ve wanted to be in full-time
ministry. There’s just something so life-giving about getting to serve people
and see them blossom in their relationship with the Lord. So when I joined
Youth With A Mission in 2008, I felt like I’d found my groove. I began to
recognize my spiritual gifts, I was pushed to try new things, and I loved being
a part of what God was doing in the lives of those around me. I felt pretty
confident in who I was and what I had to offer, in terms of ministry.
Throw in one sweet baby, and the confidence I had in
my calling was hanging on by a thread.
I became a mom in 2011, to my beautiful son
Nicholas. Motherhood felt natural and I loved getting to spend my days with my
new baby.
But there was also part of me that felt lost.
Changing diapers was a lot different than watching the Lord transform the lives
of my students. There was no one there (besides my incredible husband) to
notice the sacrifices I was making. My pride was hurt. I wanted other people to
see that I still had something to offer, though I was questioning if I did have
anything to offer.
Was I doing “enough?” Could I still serve Jesus
while being a present wife and mother?
My son is now a year old, and though I don’t have it
all figured out, the Lord has given me a little perspective about motherhood
and ministry. He’s begun to show me the immense privilege that parenthood is.
Kids are future world-changers, God-lovers, and
people-servers, who we get to pour into daily. By being available to serve my
family, I get to affect what God can and will do in my kid’s generation. That
is so exciting!
The Lord has also showed me that my calling to serve
and love people hasn’t changed – but maybe how I do that has changed.
Sometimes it takes strapping my son into the
stroller and occupying him with snacks so that I can join a prayer meeting.
Other days it might mean having people over for a meal, although I might spend
most of the time with banana stuck to my face. I believe that the Lord will
give parents the wisdom to know when to involve their kids, and when they just
need to be at home with the family. I also know that kids open doors to the
hardest of hearts. I’ve gotten into quite a few conversations with total
strangers, just because they saw me out and about with Nicholas.
You might be up to your elbows in diapers, Sesame
Street, and dirty dishes. But God wants to use you.
More than that – He can use you. The way you
minister might change for a season, and that’s ok. But when you desire to serve
God and serve others, God is faithful. He wants to use your kids, and He wants
to use you.
Mackenzie loves to encourage women in their faith and in their mothering. You can find her writing about her family, her faith, and her life as a 4’8″ tall mom at her blog, Life of a Pint-Sized Mama. You can also connect with her on Twitter.
If you would like to guest post, please review my submission guidelines here.
If you would like to guest post, please review my submission guidelines here.
