I’ve found that being a parent is an incredible spiritual journey. From cherishing the new member of the family before the arrival, to holding the baby for the first time, to watching the infant’s individuality shine as he grows—the sense of expectancy and joy is nearly indescribable.

As my husband and I prepared to welcome our son, I often found myself considering the question: “What kind of mother do I hope to be?” For many expectant parents, the answer to this question lies in considering parenting books, blogs, or even the advice of friends and family members. To some extent, I was (and am) no different.

But while I found ideas from these resources that resonated with my own intuitions about motherhood, when our son was born, I quickly found myself looking for something deeper than the often-contradictory theories about parenting found in those sources. I yearned for guidance in parenting that was compassionate, reliable, and effective.

Throughout my pregnancy, I had prayed to better understand our baby’s completeness as a wholly spiritual child of God. Now, I realized, it was time to devote myself to prayerfully considering the spiritual foundation of motherhood.

One evening, as our son struggled to settle down to sleep, I reached out in prayer to God for guidance. My prayer wasn’t wordy; it was simply a desire to see something more than two tired parents and a tired, unhappy baby. A verse from Isaiah in the Bible includes this sweet promise from God: “As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you” (66:13). In that moment, I was looking to feel evidence of that promised divine mothering—guiding, nurturing, and comforting us all.

Very gently, this idea came to my thought: “The Christian Science mother should be cheerful, orderly, punctual, patient, full of faith,—receptive to Truth and Love.” I quickly realized that this was a slight modification of a sentence in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy that says, “The nurse should be cheerful, orderly, punctual, patient, full of faith,—receptive to Truth and Love” (p. 395).

When our son was born, several Christian Science nurses had supported our family through labor and delivery, and in the initial weeks after the birth. As I thought of their example, in conjunction with this inspiration, my thought shifted to considering how the qualities of motherhood were similar to those expressed by Christian Science nurses.

Four important ideas stood out to me as I explored this connection:

Practical care is impelled by divine Love.

As I thought about the care that Christian Science nurses provide, I realized that it can be done cheerfully because the care is an expression of divine Love. In each moment, Christian Science nurses (and all of us) can turn to divine Love—not a lengthy and unmanageable to-do list—for guidance and inspiration.

The result? The practical care given by Christian Science nurses is not an obstacle to spiritual growth and uplifted thought; it effectively meets needs and, in turn, welcomes greater inspiration and healing for everyone involved, as my husband and I experienced. 

Similarly, when we as mothers let go of a false sense of personal responsibility regarding motherhood, allowing divine Love to direct us as we meet the needs of our child at any given moment, we find ourselves feeling content and inspired instead of overburdened and exhausted at the end of the day.

It’s important to nurture an understanding of man’s true identity.

There are many joyous and fun moments in motherhood, but there are also times when both the child and the mother may be cranky or frustrated, or feeling stuck in a particularly unpleasant stage, and so on. Much like the Christian Science nurse enters the patient’s room with the highest understanding of man’s true, spiritual nature, the task of motherhood is to constantly bear witness to the child’s (and the mother’s!) completeness as a spiritual idea, untouched by human circumstances.

The spiritual qualities that are a part of mothering or Christian Science nursing are innate to each one of us.

Sometimes, as a new parent, we may feel that we have been thrown into the deep end. As I thought about the qualities listed in the aforementioned citation from Science and Health, it brought into clearer focus a spiritual fact I already knew: These qualities are not self-generated, nor do they apply only if we choose to become a Christian Science nurse or a mother. They are spiritual qualities that are innate to each one of us as the expression of God, infinite Spirit. 

Therefore, we not only have them, but we must express them, because not one single aspect of God’s infinite nature can go unexpressed. Our cheer, sense of order, patience, faithfulness, and receptivity to Truth and Love are God-given, and always available in ample—infinite—supply, in any circumstance.

Honor man’s innate ability to heal.

One unique aspect of Christian Science nursing is the distinct but complementary roles of the Christian Science nurse and the Christian Science practitioner. While the practitioner is responsible for specific, scientific prayer that addresses the patient’s thought, the Christian Science nurse’s practical care plays an important role in supporting this healing work. In helping the patient feel cared for, safe, and loved, the Christian Science nurse can be instrumental in helping to alleviate fears that might otherwise inhibit the patient’s progress.

It can be tempting to feel that we are personally responsible for our child’s health, wholeness, and relationship to God, and somehow leave God as the only cause and creator out of the equation. It was so helpful for me to realize that, like a Christian Science nurse, I could recognize my child’s own relationship to God and his inherent ability to feel and know the healing power of the Christ for himself. 

Certainly, it is also my responsibility to act as a practitioner, diligently praying for my child when a need arises, as well as providing all of the normal day-to-day care needs for him. But in caring for him on a daily basis, it is equally important that I acknowledge his direct relationship to God, and his innate ability to know God’s healing presence, as a result of that unbreakable relationship.

As I became engrossed in this line of reasoning that particular evening, I forgot the sense of burden and exhaustion that I had been feeling. My son soon settled down to sleep. But most important, my sense of motherhood shifted to a more spiritual basis. A sense of burden was lifted in my day-to-day tasks, and I found a greater freedom and joy in mothering—even in the less pleasant circumstances.

It’s an ongoing journey; there are certainly days when I find it necessary to return to and reaffirm these inspirations about motherhood. But more and more, when a challenging situation arises, I’m finding myself turning more quickly to prayer, yielding my thought to divine Truth and Love, gaining a sense of dominion over the false beliefs about man that are presenting themselves, and listening for inspired direction for the exact care and healing that is needed.

In those moments, I often return to my initial question: “What kind of mother do I hope to be?” The answer that helps reorient my thought away from fear and ruminating, and reminds me of the spiritual basis for mothering, is: I can express the qualities of a Christian Science nurse in my role as a mother—spiritually, I am inherently “cheerful, orderly, punctual, patient, full of faith,—receptive to Truth and Love.” This gentle reminder that these spiritual qualities are the ever-present expression of God’s mothering love gives me the confidence to mother effectively.