Laura

Hi, Jayde, and welcome to another episode of Unsung Stories. Thank you so much for joining us. 

 

Jayde

Thanks for having me. I'm excited to give you some insight into my motherhood.

 

Laura

Awesome. So that our listeners can get to know you a little bit more. Could you tell us about yourself and what your family life looks like?

 

Jayde

Yeah, sure. So my name's Jayde. I'm 28, almost 29. I come from a non-Christian home. I found Jesus around about seven years ago now. I went to a festival called Black Stump and I just felt God's incredible love pour upon me there and that was a changing point for me. Definitely a long journey from there. But the changing point for me. But in my little home, I have two children. I have a daughter, Willa, who's two and a half, and Salvador, a little boy who's 11 months alongside my husband, Alex.

 

Laura

Did Alex become a Christian with you, or has he always been one or? ...

 

Jayde

He's had a fantastic journey. So I think he would say that he was a Christian when we first met. But looking back on it, he would believe that he just was brought up in a Christian home. He was kind of going through the motions. I think we both became Christians at the same time at that camp. It was a really big turning point for both our relationship with God and us together. It was a start to us really developing our relationship with God.

 

Laura

Yeah, that's awesome. And so if you didn't grow up in a Christian home, how have you found modelling Jesus to your kids when that wasn't something that exactly comes natural to you, because it wasn't modelled to you as a child?

 

Jayde

To be completely honest, it's really hard. I find I need to turn to my sisters in Christ a lot. I need lots of advice. I do look to my mother-in-law for answers. To me, she's a fantastic mother-in-law and I think she brought up her kids really well. So I do look to her and she is a very good influence in that way. I also just have to have really good open conversations with Alex and do the pros and cons of what we think we should do with our children in terms of teaching them about God.

 

Laura

Beautiful. So motherhood's a bit of a juggling act. Could you show how you prioritize your relationship with God during this season?

 

Jayde

Yeah, sure. I feel like I can't mother without God. So prioritizing Him is really essential to me. I find when I don't put Him first in my day, I start off bad from the beginning. I yell at my kids. I get frustrated when they don't eat their breakfast. When they don't get dressed, I get angry. Where I find if I sit down and I try and read my Bible when I wake up, which is hard, but I try and do it, I can automatically say the difference is in the way I start my day. But then if I don't get the time to do that, I at least try and listen to a worship song in the car or just pray continuously throughout the day.

 

Laura

And how do you feel like your relationship with God has changed since you became a mum? Like what was it before you became a mum? And what's it like now?

 

Jayde

Oh, man, everything has changed. I just, I don't know if it was possible, but I kind of feel like my relationship has become stronger and weaker at the same time. Weaker in terms of I guess from my pure exhaustion. I quite regularly feel like I'm distant from God and it's almost hard to maintain that relationship. But then that kind of makes me want to create a stronger relationship with God. So I guess, like, I feel like becoming a mother has pushed me so much that it makes me one hundred per cent dependent on my relationship with God and his promises.

 

Laura

Have you found a helpful way to read your Bible?

 

Jayde

I've been trying for many years to find something that works for me. I'm definitely not one of those people who can take on a task that's too big. I get really, really overwhelmed. So I've never been able to do the "Read a Bible in a year" or do a really long study. So for me, the most helpful method I find is like thinking of a specific person or event, and just trying to really get in-depth of that. So at the moment, I'm kind of trying to find out more about King David and his life.

 

And I think if I do it more like that, I stay focused and it's a lot more intriguing for me. Like, I just really want to know something more in-depth than do it, like more of a broad aspect of the Bible.

 

Laura

What's been a struggle in you spending time with God?

 

Jayde

Spending time with God. I guess the day to day. It's only so much time in a day. And I feel like, or I personally feel like as a mother, all I do is give, give, give. And by the time that I get any time to myself, I often don't think to spend that time with God. Even though I know that if I did, it would actually be the most relaxing and refuelling thing that I could possibly do. I guess that is the biggest struggle I need to probably effectively prioritize my time more.

 

Laura

What has been something, here's a broad question for you, but what has been something that's really grown you as a Christian in motherhood?

 

Jayde

Something that has really helped me grow as a Christian in motherhood. I think just growing, birthing, and nurturing a human into the world. And knowing that's a human that God has planned, just absolutely blows my mind. I think seeing this and physically being involved in the process has finally made me understand just how big our God is, and that he is in control of absolutely everything. I think just even in the messiness and the craziness of motherhood and the downs. Like I've had days where I just want to cry in the corner. I think every mother can relate to that.

 

And I never thought that would happen to me, to be honest. I thought, "No, I've got this." But even in all of that craziness where I'm like screaming at my kids, asking for their forgiveness. I know that I can go back to God and I can't do it on my own, like I have to go back to God. And I need to really rely on reading my Bible in the morning. And I really need to rely on praying to Him continuously throughout the day. Because if I didn't do that, I'd be a heap to mess on the floor, knowing that I just haven't had any grace poured upon me. And I need, I need that. I just think, like in that motherhood, it's humbled me. And it's just made me understand grace way more than I thought I ever could understand it. Yeah, it's forced me to grow. Because if I couldn't grow. I'd be left behind.

 

Laura

Yeah. And if you, you can take this really hard thing in motherhood and you can just do it. Or you can take this really hard thing and give it to God and let Him refine you and mould you and mature you so that you're more like Jesus through it.

 

Jayde

One hundred per cent. Yeah.

 

Laura

How would you encourage the mum who loves Jesus but is feeling really distant to Him in this season? I think that we can all relate to that feeling, no matter how hard we try.

 

Jayde

Definitely, yeah. I guess I would say that like Jesus didn't come down for all of those who have it all together. He came for those who are broken, they're hurt and disappointed. He came for the messy, the forgotten, and he came to heal the brokenhearted. He also came to restore joy, and he came to flood your heart with peace. So you're loved by Jesus. And I say to her, to the mother, that you're not doing this by yourself.