The Be Mighty Mom Ministry
When God’s Plan Feels Different
Hello Reader,
After spending the last few weekends building out our preschool binders for the rest of the school year, I decided it was time to make school a true part of our daily rhythm.
That morning, Maximus was having a hard start. But when I showed him the visual schedule I had printed and hung in our most-used room, something shifted. He lit up. He could see the plan. He knew what to expect.
Breakfast. Story time. School time.
He was eager to stay on schedule.
Meanwhile, Finn — our very, very two-year-old little brother — was exactly what you’d imagine: everywhere at once. It was chaotic and perfect all at the same time.
After we finished our kaleidoscope craft, I sat Max down for his worksheets.
I have always known I wanted to homeschool — long before I ever had children. But there is a difference between wanting to and realizing you need to.
As we worked through shapes and colors that he can identify, I saw how much one-on-one support he required for each task. I loved being that for him. I was grateful for Finn’s patience that morning. But seeing it clearly — not just feeling it in my heart — made something settle in me.
This wasn’t just a preference anymore.
There is no way he would thrive in a classroom needing that level of constant guidance.
That realization hurt.
And yet, my heart swelled with pride for this boy who works so hard. The boy who keeps trying. The boy who doesn’t quit.
I know the world may one day try to define him by his limitations. I pray I am never the one who does.
Which led me to wonder:
Does God place limitations on us?
The visual schedule worked for Max because he could see what was ahead. Often, we limit ourselves because we can’t see what God is doing. We mistake uncertainty for restriction.
But God’s will is not small.
He is not in the business of shrinking His children.
Yes, there are boundaries that protect us. Yes, there is shaping and refining. But the limitations that paralyze us? Those usually come from fear, from comparison, from other voices — or from our own.
God does not call us to less.
He calls us to growth.
So the question becomes:
Will we trust our Father enough to follow His direction, even when we cannot see the full schedule on the wall?
Maybe our children can teach us something here.
Stay Mighty,
Need Somewhere to Start? Start With Prayer.
If you’re feeling the urge to do something but don’t know where to begin, start with prayer.
|
|
|
|
Devotional of the Week
Isaiah 55:8–9 (NIV)
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
There are moments in parenting that gently, but firmly, reshape your understanding. As I sat beside my son working through lessons, I realized how much one-on-one guidance he truly needed to thrive. I have always felt called to homeschool, but in that moment, it shifted from desire to clarity. He didn’t need less expectation — he needed more presence.
And if I’m honest, there was grief mixed in with that clarity. Not because of who he is, but because of the version of life I once pictured. It is easy to measure our children — and ourselves — against visible milestones and cultural standards. Independence. Speed. Effortless progress.
But God does not measure the way the world measures.
The visual schedule I created for my son gave him confidence because he could see what was ahead. He knew the plan. He trusted the process because it was visible. Our walk with the Lord rarely works that way. We do not get the full outline. We get the next faithful step.
Reflection
Isaiah reminds us that God sees beyond what we see. His perspective stretches higher than our expectations, our timelines, and even our fears. When something in our lives doesn’t look the way we imagined — when progress feels slower or the path feels different — it does not mean God is absent or limiting us. It means He is working from a vantage point we cannot yet access. His ways are higher, not harsher. His thoughts are wiser, not withholding.
Sometimes what looks like limitation is actually intentional shaping. What feels like delay may be development. God’s higher ways mean He is forming something deeper than what is immediately visible.
Compassion begins when we release comparison. When we stop forcing outcomes and start trusting design. God is not frustrated by how we are formed. He is intentional. And when we choose to meet our children with patience and compassion, we reflect the heart of a Father who does the same with us.
Journal Prompt
Where in your life are you struggling because things don’t look the way you expected?
What would it look like to trust that God’s higher ways are shaping something good — even if you cannot yet see the full picture?
A Closing Prayer
Heavenly Father,
You see what I cannot see. When my expectations and reality do not align, help me trust that Your ways are higher and better than mine. Give me compassion for my child and for myself when the path feels different than I imagined. Remove comparison from my heart and replace it with confidence in Your design. Teach me to walk faithfully in the next step You place before me.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
