When all the trials of motherhood assail us, we can trust that through it all, Christ will hold us fast. Here's my story of trusting Christ to hold me fast through postpartum depression and anxiety.

Rather than dealing with the grief of your situation, do you project unnecessary judgments about yourself, your situation, or others? To help us better cope with our suffering, therapists have created a coping skill known as radical acceptance. As believers, we can use radical acceptance paired with our hope in Christ to help us through our suffering.

As the Christmas season approaches, memories around my twins’ traumatic birth start to tumble in my heart. How do we quiet our hearts to enjoy Christmas this year? How do we find the peace that was announced on Christ’s birth? I think of Mary, the mother of our Savior, and the example she left us.

Every baby, every mother, every family is different to some degree. What works for one mom or one baby might not work for another; but in both my pregnancies and postpartum experiences I’ve found these six things to be true each time.

More than six million people in the United States alone face intrusive thoughts. Perhaps you’re one of those people. And perhaps like me, these thoughts rattle you and your faith at times. What’s wrong with me? How can I, one redeemed by Christ and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, experience these kinds of disturbing, violent, or sexual thoughts?

My entire life I’ve waged war against anxiety. I’ve longed for the day when I wouldn’t be afraid of vomiting or social gatherings. After all these years, I’m still facing anxiety. Maybe you’ve heard those stories of victory and overcoming I’m learning that those aren’t the only stories. But that doesn’t mean the rest of us are hopeless—if we choose, we can find quite the opposite.

To trust God we don’t need to turn our heads from modern medicine and research. Those places aren’t God-forsaken. Even if the people’s hearts are darkened towards him, he is still powerful and gracious enough to shine through them.

One day as I struggled to burp one baby while the other wiggled next to me, I muttered to my husband, “God should have given mothers of multiples the ability to grow an extra arm.” But as each day passed and more people offered to help, I realized that God had given us something much better than extra limbs—he had given us whole people who loved us and our children.

Christina Fox’s book Sufficient Hope came to me during one of those waves of floundering and showed me what I truly needed: to be reminded of the gospel. “Whatever experiences we face in motherhood, we all need Jesus—and he is sufficient.” (p. 14).

We want hope that will help us persevere in the suffering that will inevitably come. But for our hope to do this, it needs to be set on something. Friend, which kind of hope do you have? Is your hope sure, or does it only lead to more pain and anxiety?

What we don’t think about is the possibility that we may not always enjoy motherhood. That motherhood isn’t all bliss and sloppy kisses. I experience days like this, and I know the only thing sustaining me is the grace of God. If motherhood has taught me anything, it is that God will hold me fast. 

God has taught me to love the Psalms and rest in them. In weary times when my mind is too tired to focus and my heart is jumbled and distracted, I have found rest in studying the Psalms. I didn’t believe that a study of the Psalms would challenge me like it has and cause such growth. I was a fool to doubt God’s beautiful and inspired Word. 

“Morning Times, Nursery Rhymes, and My Journey Towards Sanctification.” Motherhood is sanctifying, and Cindy Rollins displays this through stories of laughter, tears, and celebration.