Motherhood desire fulfilled

Watching families heading home after church, I voiced a closely held yearning: “I’m sorry that I never had a child.” 

My friend replied, “You can’t be denied your motherhood.” 

I accepted his response as an absolute truth. I’d learned in my study of Christian Science that as my Father-Mother God’s image and likeness, I possessed not only all Her mothering qualities but also opportunities to “be fruitful, and multiply” them in my experience (see Genesis 1:26, 28).

The Scriptures share accounts of women such as Hannah and Elisabeth, who bore children after praying to God. Being single, I felt childbirth wasn’t an option, nor was I inclined to adopt. But surely, God would fulfill that mothering desire deep in my heart. I recalled this promise in the book of Isaiah: “Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord” (66:9). 

I felt it was important to cultivate my maternal qualities and found particularly helpful this sentence in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy: “What we most need is the prayer of fervent desire for growth in grace, expressed in patience, meekness, love, and good deeds” (p. 4). Teaching in my church’s Sunday School seemed a good way to put that statement into practice. So, I volunteered and was assigned a class of sweet and lively boys I loved from the start. I rejoiced, “This is it!” and thanked God for delivering on Her promise.

God would fulfill that mothering desire deep in my heart.

But She wasn’t done. I became reacquainted with a man I’d met in Primary class (a two-week, in-depth course about Christian Science) many years before. Jim was now a single dad of three, the youngest of whom, 12-year-old Matt, lived at home. A romance with Jim blossomed, and before long, I visited his family, where I felt I belonged. Months later, Jim and I married, and soon after the honeymoon, I was cutting a cake at Matt’s birthday party. 

Stepparenting brings challenges, and I had much to learn. But bless Mother Love for nurturing Matt and me in a sweet relationship. Some time later, our bond strengthened when Jim suddenly passed on. Matt continued living with me through high school and college, and is now happily married with a family of his own. We presently live many miles apart, but Matt, his siblings, and their children are forever close to my heart.

God still impels me to “be fruitful, and multiply” my maternal affections and provides a world of opportunities, including helping those needing healing. What a good Mother She is!