Moms, It's Time To POWER UP - Mother's Day Devotion

“You wrote that the world does not need a savior but everyday I hear people crying for one.” Superman (Superman Returns)

Recently, my daughter had an incident of being bullied at school. Some comments crossed the decency line and the Momma Bear in me reared up in full force. Thankfully, my daughter chose to share the incident with me and after a long discussion, I was able to convince her that we had to go through the proper channels to deal with it.  Her biggest fear was retribution or loss of friendships. My biggest fear was that I would have an aneurysm from the stress or that I would hurt someone. So that night, after doing everything humanly possible to deal with it, it was time for Mom to power up – Holy Spirit Power!

Before bed, I laid hands on my daughter and prayed in the authority given to me as a Believer in Jesus Christ. I’m surprised the walls of her bedroom didn't shake from the cries of my heart to my Father in Heaven. I prayed for His divine intervention. I prayed that the Enemies coming against her would be bound. I literally prayed that the mouths of her tormentors would be sealed shut rendering them unable to spout harmful comments. I prayed that God would change their hearts. I prayed for wisdom for the school administrators. I prayed that the Holy Spirit would be overflow on her campus. I prayed that my daughter would be filled with the Spirit so that if anyone tried to come against her they would see the power of Jesus in her….

Then I literally collapsed on my bed.

If you have a child who has dealt with peer issues, you feel my pain.  Everyday it seems like we are sending them into battle. The Enemy is attacking from all sides. And though at times I feel helpless, I have to remember that I am not sending her into battle alone.  Because you see, as much as I love her, God loves her more. As much as I want the best for her, God’s plans for her are greater. As much as I want to protect her, I can’t be with her at all times. BUT God IS and this is His promise:

[DAUGHTER] You realize, don’t you that you are the temple of God, and God himself is present in you? No one will get by with vandalizing God’s temple, you can be sure of that. God’s temple is sacred—and you [DAUGHTER], remember, are the temple. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (The Message)

My job as mom is to remind her who she is.  So that morning, as I was preparing to send her back to school, this “Declaration of Identity” poured out of my heart and onto a piece of paper.  I placed this declaration into her backpack because I wanted her to be able to reach for it throughout the day to remind herself who she is Jesus Christ.

My Daughter

This is who you are in Christ…

A royal princess – daughter of the King

A co-heir with Jesus

A work of art

God calls you His masterpiece.

He created you in His Image:

Beautiful, pure, loving, and full of joy

You are the apple of His eye.

He knows every thought that goes through your head.

He has a plan for your future greater than your wildest dreams.

He has an army of angels at your disposal. Call on them for help.

The Creator of the Universe loves you so much that He died for you.

His Holy Spirit dwells in you.

He has your back

He has your front

He goes ahead of you

He looks out behind you

There is no enemy that is greater than God

Nothing can harm you

Remember who you are in JESUS

Claim His power within you

Speak it into life

You are His BELOVED

You are His delight

His precious daughter

He will never leave you

He walks with you

He carries your burdens

He solves your problems

He is God Almighty

And He is always on your side

Love

Mom

Now for my praise report! God answered every one of our prayers. The matter was resolved better than I could have imagined. My daughter was amazed that the individuals apologized and had a change of heart. They wanted to be her friend. HALLELUJAH! HOLY SPIRIT POWER! The power to change hearts! The greatest blessing is that this experience has been a huge faith builder. My daughter was able to witness answered prayer. She saw miracles at work. And greater yet, she was given the opportunity to share her testimony at a bible study on peer pressure. You see, God works all things for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

Psalm 90:16 Let us see your miracles again; let our children see your glory at work.

So in honor of Mother’s Day, I would like to share one of my favorite stories about my own Superhero Mom. When I was about 6 years old (almost 40 years ago), my older sister and I were being bullied walking home from school.  Now my sister and I had a plan…run…very fast. Well we must have told my mom or she saw us running home one day, because I remember getting this life lesson. She told us, “You never start a fight, but you never run from one either.”  “Why?” we asked, “We like running!”

We were instructed to tell those bullies that they were to meet us after school for a big show down. My sister and I were quaking in our Oxfords, with our dukes up, ready for battle.  But behind us stood our mom and she told those girls, “My daughters don’t start fights but they don’t run from one either. So if you want to fight, they’re ready.” Since my sister and I were looking ahead, I can only imagine what my mom looked like behind us. I kind of like to imagine she looked something like Jesus when the soldiers came to capture Him and he protected his disciples standing behind him. He said, “I AM He” and just the authority in His voice caused them to lurch backwards and fall to the ground. (John 18:6-8)  I don’t think I have ever seen anyone apologize or retreat as fast as those girls. They never bothered us again.  My mom is awesome like that! She still does not let us run from a fight, only now her weapon of choice is prayer. My mom is a powerful prayer warrior and when the Enemy comes attacking, she still has our back only now it is covered in prayer. And prayer is mightiest weapon of all.

Moms, this Mother’s Day, remember who YOU are in CHRIST. This Declaration of Identity if for you too. Claim the authority given to you as a Believer in Jesus Christ and ask for the one thing that will save the day: HOLY SPIRIT POWER! The battle for our children’s hearts, minds, and souls is raging but we are not giving up our children without a fight.  So power up Moms because we didn't start this fight but we aren't running either!

Happy Mother’s Day!

Love,

Yolanda

This post is dedicated to my mom. I love you mom and Happy Mother’s Day.

Thank you for being such a great mom and for modeling what it is to be a strong, amazing woman of God.  May the Lord bless you and continue to use you to spread His Love and Wisdom. You have the gift of hospitality, intercessory prayer, and a servant's heart. Because of your compassion for others, He has made you a mother figure to many.

The following Bars & Melody video is amazing. It's a song about the affects of bullying and finding hope.