Midnight Lullabies

Moments of Peace for Moms

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By Lauren Eberspacher

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Usher the peace of Jesus back into motherhood with Lauren Eberspacher’s 31-day devotional, Midnight Lullibies.

Often, mothers are told about the joyful, exciting things that they are about to embark on as they enter into parenthood. What people fail to share is the hard seasons of motherhood: loneliness, anxiety, depression, insecurity, comparison, disconnect with the Lord and their husbands, and loss of identity. These seasons can consume their hearts and steal their joy, leaving them hopeless and full of shame. Most mothers hide during this time, thinking that they are alone or that something is wrong with them. The simple truth is that having children changes everything. But so does Jesus. His Word can breathe life into every space, and Midnight Lullabies meets the weary mama in the trenches of motherhood while she does Kingdom work within the four walls of her home, shining light and giving hope when it seems most far away.

In Midnight Lullabies, over 31 days, Lauren Eberspacher explores those places of motherhood that are often left unspoken. While embarking on her own journey of being a mama, she has encountered seasons that shocked and surprised her. But there is always hope. As a storyteller, Lauren takes the everyday moments and gives biblical insight to the mother facing these hard seasons, giving the reader a sense that they are having a conversation with a friend around a cozy kitchen table.

Mothers often just want to hear another mom say she’s in it with them. And when Eberspacher addresses these hard issues, she not only says, “I’ve been there; I understand,” but she follows it with, “But God.” Eberspacher shows that Jesus can be found in every moment of motherhood and that His strength and His Word are enough for you.

Excerpt

YOUR INVITATION

I sat in a heap on my bed, my hair in a messy bun; the baby was playing down on the floor. There was laundry scattered all over the room, some of it clean, some of it dirty. But if I’m being really honest, I was too over it to care.

I was six months into motherhood and felt like I was sinking beneath the weight of it all and wondering where God was in the middle of it. The high of the newborn stage had worn off and the exhaustion of mom life had set in. The reality that I wasn’t who I once was had hit me like a ton of bricks, and I realized that I couldn’t just keep trying to tread these uncharted waters any longer.

Not only was I unable to contend with the housework, but I couldn’t keep up with the emotions that were overpowering my mind, either. And oh, I had so many emotions: feelings that felt so big and so raw, feelings that I was defenseless against. And the enemy knew it.

I had tried to work through them on my own, and for a while I really believed I was beginning to make some progress. But just when I thought I was starting to see the fog lift, all of the other emotions would come tumbling down around me like a chain reaction. It made it difficult for me to do even the simplest of things, let alone enjoy doing them. Whether it was the middle of the day or the middle of the night, my emotions ruled my life and affected everything in it.

I was stuck in an emotional identity crisis of motherhood with absolutely no idea of how I was going to get out.

I think the thing that can be so confusing about our emotions is that they are instantaneous; our minds can go from zero to one hundred in a second. And if the emotion is strong enough for long enough, that feeling becomes our source of truth, and we get trapped into believing the lies that our emotions make us feel. Oftentimes, this feeling of being trapped leads us to making decisions and believing things about ourselves and God that we wouldn’t think to be true otherwise. And when we act on these feelings in a moment of heightened emotion, there are always repercussions, and it almost always ends up with my peace disappearing and my motherhood stolen.

Here’s the thing about emotions, friend. My emotions are indicators, not dictators. My emotions are not my source of truth.

But God is. And in a world that tells us to “follow your heart” and “do what feels good,” we must stand up to the lies that our emotions are going to try to tell us and look to what is completely stable instead. And that’s God’s Word.

God created us to experience emotions. He even allows us to feel the bad ones. But that doesn’t mean he wants us to stay stuck in them. And choosing to remain in bondage to these emotions will only leave you and me with an unsettled heart and a constant yearning for peace that seems so very far out of our reach. And it’s so tiring to keep reaching for something that seems so far away, isn’t it?

I don’t know about you, but it’s hard to know how to step back into that place of peace in motherhood. It’s overwhelming to think what I need to do first to get to a mindset where my vision is clear and my emotions aren’t owning me. It’s hard to act when you feel so stuck.

But together, this month, we are going to break through the darkness of our emotions and step back into the light of God’s peace. It isn’t going to be easy. In fact, it’s going to hurt. But what we are going to find is that our emotions in light of the love of God and who he says we are changes everything. And when you are given the opportunity to take that step back into his peace, back into the design for who he created for you to be as a mom, you can take that step in confidence, trusting that God is leading you back where he longs for you to be. In his perfect peace.

Do you find yourself sitting on your bed like I was that day, friend? Are you tired of being stuck in the chaos of your emotions? Are ready to break free of the chains enslaving you? What if you stood up against the lies of the enemy and refused to be a slave to them any longer, but became the woman God designed you to be and have your motherhood redeemed? Are you ready to take a stand?

A stand against:

The loneliness.

The lack of confidence.

The insecurity.

The anger.

The sadness.

The doubt.

The anxiety.

The exhaustion.

The envy.

The things that keep you up at night that you can’t stand to hang on to a moment longer.

It is time to reclaim our emotions, hand them back over to the One who created us to experience them, and renew our minds in the freedom of Christ. Are you ready?

You keep him in perfect peace

whose mind is stayed on you,

because he trusts in you.

Trust in the LORD forever,

for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

ISAIAH 26:3–4




Day 1

THE STAND TO BECOME MORE AND THE LIE OF THE BIG-GIRL PANTIES

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

GALATIANS 5:1

They laid that baby on my chest, and everything changed. Half of my husband, half of me, and a part of my heart that I never knew was there was instantly overflowing with love.

Fierce, unwavering, terrifying love.

In an instant, the love of this babe changed my heart. And in those moments, everything was perfect, and I found myself wondering how I ever lived a day of my life without her. In those moments, everything was just as they told me it would be.

But nobody told me just how fast it could all change or how broken I could become.

When I was pregnant with our first daughter, I remember being given more than enough advice from other mamas. Because it’s the duty of those of us who have gone before to pass the gift of this knowledge on, right? Women would sit me down at church and take me by the hands, telling me how happy this next chapter of my life was going to be. Ladies sat around at my baby shower as we oohed and ahhed over teeny-tiny baby clothes and told me to savor every moment of their littleness. Even the random woman at the grocery store felt it her job to tell me about the overwhelmingly beautiful experience that I was about to partake in.

But nobody told me.

Nobody told me that the emotions of motherhood could make me become completely undone. Nobody told me in the midst of the happiest days of my life and in the songs of the midnight lullabies I would sing in my daughter’s nursery that I would find myself on my knees, trapped in the fury of my emotions and wondering who I had become and where the woman I once was had gone. Everyone had failed to mention that Satan was on the prowl to steal my motherhood and that he would start with the rawest emotions of my heart to do it.

One of the costliest pieces of advice that I was given by these well-meaning women was that of the big-girl panties. They talked about them like they were a prize to be worn, a trophy of strength and resilience. It’s based on the belief that mothers must not give in to the frailty of their own hearts; when one pulls up the big-girl panties, they simultaneously push down all of the emotions. For most, it is the battle cry of motherhood. But the big-girl panties came at a price, one that I, like most women, was willing to pay. And that’s the price of vulnerability. Not just with everyone else, but with ourselves and our unwillingness to let God into the sacred space of it, either.

This pushing down of our emotions, this compartmentalization of our very souls, is one of the greatest lies of the enemy we believe. It causes us to put our feelings into glass cases of emotion and push them as far away as we can, out of sight and out of mind. We think that if we can just pull our big-girl panties up far enough and safely tuck our emotions into the farthest corners of our hearts that we won’t have to deal with the insecurity we feel and the doubt that consumes our souls. So what do we do? We go through our motherhood, treading cautiously inside our own hearts and carefully tiptoeing around these glass cases, knowing just how delicate they are.

But tiptoeing means that we can never run free. Tiptoeing means that we aren’t living in peace. All because we choose to trust our emotions rather than the One who created us to feel them. In our tiptoeing, we’re naïve enough to think that if we keep these glass cases of emotion shoved down long enough and are careful enough around them, they’re never going to shatter. But when we put our emotions into those glass cases, they begin to silently multiply. And sooner or later, they’re going to run out of room and shatter. And when those cases shatter, so will your precious heart. So why not be the one to choose to take the cases out, open them up, and let the Holy Spirit unpack them? We can choose, friend. We can make the choice and then let God make the change.

In your life, there is always going to be one person holding you back from the freedom of your emotions. There is always going to be one person keeping you from experiencing motherhood the way you were designed to. There is always going to be one person who doesn’t believe that you have what it takes to become who you were destined to be.

And it’s you. You have to be the one to take the stand and say, “No more!” to the enemy. You have to be the one who believes that what God says about you is true. And you have to be the one who looks at her emotions through the lens of Jesus and the freedom of the gospel.

It’s time to take a stand to become more and be released from the bondage of our emotions. And it starts today.

Take One Step into Peace:

Surrender Your Emotions

The thing that Satan longs to steal the most from us is our identity in Christ. But Scripture tells us that Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10). God longs for us to experience life to the fullest in him, including in motherhood. But the enemy comes into our minds like a thief, and the thing he is looking to steal is our peace. And isn’t that what we long for most?

Today we are going to speak peace over our emotions and declare victory over the enemy. I want you to take the emotion you feel most debilitated by today—anger, loneliness, loss of identity, insecurity, defeat, sadness—and write it on a piece of paper. Holding it in your hands, speak the prayer below to God, believing that he is capable of freeing you from this emotion that has a hold on your heart. When you are done praying, crumple your piece of paper up and be rid of it. Choose the rest of this day to continue to speak peace over your feelings, over that particular emotion, and surrender them to the Lord.

 

Dear God,

Today I thank you for the gift of my emotions, and that you allow me to experience your love and peace. But today my heart feels shaken. The emotions that have come along with being a mom are so hard to work through, and it’s become easy to believe the lies that come along with them. But, God, I believe what you say about me and who you are! Today I give my feeling of over to you. I know that you are a God of peace Who transcends all of my understanding. Please help me to guard my heart and mind against the enemy and help me to remember who I am in you. I am your child, and today I am choosing to walk in your truth for me. In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen.




Day 2

WHEN THE ENEMY TELLS YOU THAT YOU’RE NOT ENOUGH

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

1 PETER 2:9

I remember it like it was yesterday. It was the day that we brought our oldest daughter home from the hospital. I was a mess. Wasn’t this supposed to be one of the happiest days of my life? I wanted it to be so badly, but it just wasn’t. I was physically exhausted. Mentally drained. Emotionally done. Hormonally raging.

And I was so scared.

I remember sitting on our couch, and once the tears started falling, they didn’t stop. As a first-time parent, I could hear the lies making their way toward the front of my mind. They were the lies of the enemy, and they shrouded me in a darkness like I had never known before.

“Your baby can’t breastfeed. You are a failure.”

“Your baby is losing weight. Your body is failing you.”

“Will you be able to love her enough?”

“Your baby won’t stop crying. You must be doing something wrong.”

“You. Are. Not. Enough.”

Oh, how I wish that I could go back in time and tell that new mama on the couch just how much she was worth, how much she was created to be this baby’s mom. I wish I could go back and tell her that she was more than enough because God had chosen her for something great, something so much greater than herself.

She was created to be a mama empowered with the strength of Christ, proclaiming his name in the trenches of motherhood.

Now three babies later, I’ve seen most of it—exclusively pumping, supplementing, exclusively breastfeeding, vaginal births, a C-section, chubby babies, skinny babies, babies with colic, and a baby who doesn’t make a peep… Each baby has been so different. But with each one, something remained the same.

I was enough for them, and it was because God was more than enough for me. And every time I chose to shout his name into the fear of the darkness of motherhood, the more empowered I became—even in the seasons that seemed the most hopeless. When my bones were the most dry and my voice shaky and parched, that first cry out to him in the night was always the beginning of his greatness manifested in my motherhood and his undeniable peace reigning in my life.

So, wherever you are today, mama, whether you are standing firm in your trenches or if you have fallen flat on your face, crying out for mercy from the Father… you were chosen for this. And it’s not because of anything you have done, but because of the matchless grace of a God who sustains you.

No matter how dark the night may seem.

Take One Step into Peace:

Declare That You Belong to Him

Today is your chance to take a step out of the darkness and into his marvelous light, sweet friend. God has not given you a spirit of timidity, but one of power, and of love, and of self-discipline (2 Tim. 1:7). So today is your day to declare that you belong to him and that he is great! I want you to stand up where you are right now and say these words out loud:

I am chosen by God—I am his and he is mine. I am a woman empowered by the Spirit of the Living God. The darkness of motherhood has no hold on me. Today I walk in his light!

Really, stand up and proclaim these words with your mouth and shout them in your heart. Speak them in your kitchen and your bathroom, in your baby’s nursery and in your toddler’s bedroom. Write them down on a card and recite them while you scrub the dishes in the sink tonight. When we proclaim the truth about who God says we are, there is a shift in the darkness. And shifting causes cracks. And one crack in the darkness may be all the space you need for that ray of hope to shine into your weary mama heart.

 

Dear God,

Thank you for the gift of my children. But Lord, I am fearful, weary, and insecure—the darkness of motherhood has overwhelmed me. But God, you are greater than the dark. Already, you have called me out of it and into your light and grace. Thank you for your tender mercies to me, Lord. Thank you for promising to meet me with your peace in the places of my heart that seem the most unlovable and unreachable. I praise you, for you are a God of redemption. And because you have given me the power of your Spirit, I will rise from this darkness and victoriously walk in your marvelous light. Thank you for meeting me here, Lord—thank you for being an enduring Father to this weary mama. In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen.




Day 3

WHEN YOU BRING A SACRED OFFERING

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Genre:

  • "This is a book I wish I had seven years ago as I cradled my first baby. It wraps up all of the big, and sometimes scary emotions of motherhood in truth. It silences lies, some that we didn't even know we were telling ourselves. Proverbs 12:20 tell us that 'Those who plan peace have joy,' and each chapter of this book is a strategic step in that Peace Plan. Lauren sheds light on many of the subjects I grapple with regularly as a mom, as well as some areas that I did not know I was neglecting. In grace, she provides simple yet powerful next steps to be taken toward a more peace-filled mamahood. This is a book I will be gifting to many mama friends, and it is one I will be revisiting myself throughout the many stages of motherhood."—Eryn Lynum, Speaker and Author of 936 Pennies: Discovering the Joy of Intentional Parenting
  • "Lauren is an unparalleled prayer warrior. And for someone like me, who struggles to even remember to pray, let alone do so coherently-her easy, breezy way of talking to God is a welcome source of light inside a dark and consuming cave. Lauren's devotional offers up actionable steps for wrangling the wild, unruly emotions of motherhood-as well as a daily dose of hope-fueled encouragement designed to help us release our self-imposed shame and grab hold of our sustaining 'even though.' This book belongs on nightstands everywhere. There won't be a copy without dog-eared corners, a cracked spine, and beautiful stains of hot tears of relief over Lauren's life-giving words."—Jodie Utter, writer and blogger at Utter Imperfection
  • "Lauren's vulnerability and relatability are unmatched. Women will close Midnight Lullabies feeling understood, encouraged, comforted and pointed north to the one who calls them worthy even when they feel anything but."—Jillian Benfield, Special Needs Mom, owner of JillianBenfield.com
  • "Lauren's words need to be read by women in the trenches of motherhood. You'll cry, you'll smile, you will relate to every beautiful mess found between these pages.
"Mothers are busy and we don't make enough time to find God in our everyday lives. But you can find Him in Midnight Lullabies. The daily chapters walk you through the muck of those tough years when our kids are young and our marriages are pushed to their limits.
"And if you get distracted by a crying baby or a hungry husband, you can put the book down and pick it back up, right where you left it, with ease.
"There aren't enough women telling the world to love our husbands, (yes, even when they make us mad), to love ourselves, (yes, even when we doubt) and most of all, to love God. Lauren does that. You'll love Midnight Lullabies. You'll love Lauren Eberspacher. We all do."—Leslie Means, Founder and owner of Her View From Home, 2018
  • "The authentic and heartfelt writings of midnight lullabies met me in motherhood with the truth and hope that my weary soul needed. Lauren's words bring biblical truth to every mother and make you feel like you're sitting with a friend over coffee. You can feel Lauren's soul in her writing, and I can always count on her words for encouragement."—Caitlin Henderson, Faith, Farming, and Family
  • "I have been in love with Lauren's beautiful, faith-filled writing for years. And Midnight Lullabies was no exception. Her message always comes from a place of genuine, honest love for the Lord and her readers. When Midnight Lullabies became part of my morning devotion, I started every day with tears in my eyes, peace in my heart, and a new outlook on how to overcome the challenges of motherhood."—Terryn Drieling, Faith Family & Beef
  • "As the director of Mom's Connection, a faith based group for mothers, I believe Midnight Lullabies is a much needed resource and devotional for moms. Moms need daily encouragement, but are often over looked as they go about meeting the needs of everyone else in the family. Lauren has done a wonderful job of exploring so thoughtfully the different issues moms face while offering great hope! The 'one step into' part of each devotional helps women put application to what's been shared, which is a crucial step in anyone's faith walk."—Sherry White, The Messy Christian blog
  • "Lauren's servant heart shines as brightly as the stars in the pages of Midnight Lullabies. Lauren shares openly, honestly, and with refreshing relatability about both the deep challenge and immense joy of motherhood. Her words are rooted in truth, and steeped in the hope of Christ. A must-have for busy moms who are yearning for moments of peace in the midst of motherhood."—Carolyn Moore, editor, Her View from Home
  • "Midnight Lullabies champions a mama's heart and soothes a mama's soul. Lauren has a way of reaching her hand out through the words she's penned to grasp the hand of the woman reading them. She offers camaraderie in the loneliness and understanding in the trenches of motherhood, while helping mamas navigate their emotions with the truth of God's word. Lauren's empathetic nature embraces a mama's soul, allowing her to feel heard and understood in her struggles, while also sharing practical steps to help her traverse the struggle and claim God's peace. More than anything, Midnight Lullabies shares not only encouragement for the day, but hope for eternity through the love and grace we find in Jesus Christ."—Ginger Hughes, author of the blog No Mama's Perfect
  • "Motherhood can be a lonely endeavor and no woman should have to do it alone. In Midnight Lullabies Lauren becomes the friend, the witness, and the inspiration to mothers everywhere who are struggling in the trenches."—Liz Petrone, writer at lizpetrone.com and author of the upcoming book The Price of Admission
  • "Lauren Eberspacher's writing is consistently relatable, meaningful, and uplifting. Whether she's tackling topics like post-pregnancy weight gain, post-kid date nights, or postpartum depression, Lauren gives voice to the true thoughts percolating in other mom's subconscious (but exhausted!) minds. Even better, she helps her fellow moms feel more grounded and less alone."—Laura Coffey, editor of the TODAY Show's Parenting Team community and bestselling author of My Old Dog: Rescued Pets with Remarkable Second Acts
  • "There's a magic in how she gets you to listen and the most important piece of this magic is that you are made to feel like you matter and that you're never really alone. If I had to choose one writer to read each and every day exclusively it would without any doubt be Lauren Eberspacher!" —Lisa Leshaw, M.S. CMHC, Leader of women's counseling groups, Writer for Chicken Soup for the Soul and Huffington Post, 2018
  • "As Lauren Eberspacher's pastor, I have had the privilege of getting to know her in the full spectrum of ministry, personal, and family settings. She is a passionate pursuer of God's truth and has a winsome way of articulating it as she writes with authenticity about the ordinary - and not so ordinary - experiences of everyday life. She also writes with the unusual combination of vulnerability and transparency coupled with wisdom beyond her years that leaves you wanting more. I have the highest confidence in the quality of Lauren's spiritual counsel which you will find seamlessly folded in with a good dose of tears and giggles."—Jim Hight, D. Min., Lead Pastor of Beth-El Community Church, Milford, NE
  • "I have had the joy of watching Lauren mature and thrive in her role as wife and mother and have appreciated hearing her heart through her blog. Lauren's love for the Lord and desire to encourage young moms by sharing her real-life ups and downs comes through her authentic writing. Her writing not only brings much needed reassurance of God's presence through this season of life, but she also inspires all women's hearts to lean in and grasp the fullness of God's love. I pray that this devotional will encourage all of us to embrace how wide, how long, how high and how deep His love is, and may He strengthen those whose hearts belong to Him."—Cindy Bentele, Bible Leading Teacher and Children's Director for international ministry
  • "Lauren's words are like a salve for the soul. Her raw honesty and vulnerability paint a realistic picture of motherhood that every woman can benefit from hearing.

  • "Midnight Lullabies walks you through a hard-fought battle to tap into the grace and mercy that only a loving God can provide. Lauren's bravery sharing from the depths of a mother's post-partum journey, chronicling her painfully relatable road from the pit to the mountaintop.

    "Mamas, friends, you need these words. Read them, study them, and allow them to nourish your spirit."—Brynn Burger, The Mama On The Rocks
  • "As moms, we are constantly bombarded with advice and encouragement. Breaking through all that noise is Lauren's voice. Not only is her voice genuine and authentic, but her words are also grounded in Christ's truth. Turn down the noise of this world with Lauren's daily devotional. You won't regret it. This devotional is a lifeline for all of us moms when we feel like we're in the trenches."—Gloryanna Boge, writer at www.gloryannaboge.com
  • "As a mother of six I was captivated by Lauren's stories and prayers in Midnight Lullabies. She writes in a way that is relatable and comfortable yet it calls us to action leading us to pray without ceasing and encouraging us to deal with the difficult places in our lives. Midnight Lullabies invites us to look deep into our hearts and truly learn to walk closely with Jesus. This is a book that should be found on every woman's coffee table."—Jennifer A. Kish, author, speaker and writer at Sprinkles In My Closet
  • "Midnight Lullabies: Moments of Peace for Moms is the perfect book for every mom who has ever felt alone, scared, and frustrated. Reading it is like being enveloped in a warm comforting hug by a good friend who understands what you are going through and is there to give you hope and strength."—Tiffany O'Connor, co-author of the Unofficial Guidebook to Surviving series
  • On Sale
    Apr 9, 2019
    Page Count
    176 pages
    Publisher
    FaithWords
    ISBN-13
    9781546035206

    Lauren Eberspacher

    About the Author

    Lauren Eberspacher is a blogger and author, living intentionally for Jesus, with a desire to give heartfelt encouragement to the everyday mama and wife. At her blog, From Blacktop to Dirt Road (fromblacktoptodirtroad.com), she writes about all things faith, farm, and old-fashioned homemaking, sharing real-life moments with a healthy dose of laughter along the way.

    Eberspacher’s deepest desire is to help other women break the stigma of seeking the world’s perfection, but instead help them seek the purification of Christ. She is just like every other mom out there in her sweat pants — an imperfect woman, serving a Perfect Savior and raising children for His glory.

    Growing up a city girl in the suburbs of Kansas City as the daughter of a pastor, Eberspacher found herself in love with a farm boy from Nebraska, which took her from the city blacktop to the dirt road of their grain farm. She is a stay-at-home mom to her three small children, and learn-in-progress farm wife to her bearded farmer, Eric. They live in Milford, Nebraska.

    Her writing has been published on many sites, including Her View From Home, the Today Show, FaithIt, Us Weekly, PopSugar Moms, Dearly, Love What Matters, and Simply Wholehearted.

    Learn more about this author