There are three “stages” of labor. The second part, the part where your cervix dilates and you push and the baby is born, that part is called “transition”. I find it very fitting that the part of labor where the entire world for the child and mother changes is called “transition”. After this part of labor, it’s never the same. The baby goes from fetus/womb dweller to infant. The mother goes from pregnant to postpartum. For first time mothers, we transition from “pregnant lady” to “mother”.
Transitions are, in some regard, an identity change. Especially when it involves the closing of one chapter and the beginning of another. High school seniors transition to college students. Preschoolers transition to kindergarteners. Babies transition to toddlers. Teachers transition to whoever they are in the summer. Things change. And transitions can be really alarming and scary for people.
I know that there is nothing that can prepare me to change from wife and pregnant woman to mom. There is no preparation for going from just “husband and wife” to a family of three. There just isn’t. And I think if I didn’t understand that God goes before me and that He is where I am rooted, then I would probably lose my mind.
Because before I was a pregnant lady, a wife, a teacher, a mom, a sister, a whatever, I was a child of God. And despite all the lifestyle changes and different seasons I’ve gone through, that has never changed. And transition is so much easier when we are rooted in truth. When I know that God loves me and I am His child before anything else, then whatever change comes my way loses some power.
May is a season of change and transition. Kids end school, kids start new jobs; teachers get a break, things end and new things start. And yet, in all this transition, God never changes. He doesn’t end or begin or transition. There is no end of Him, and because we are in Him, there is no end of our true identity.
There are lots of women out there who will have major change this month. Moms are watching their babies graduate, moms are watching their babies become mothers, women are going from single to wed, women are going from college student to career woman, women are seeing one chapter end and another begin, and that can bring some serious questioning and anxiety. But we must remember that who we are in Christ never changes, never transitions, never ends, and if we can cling to that steady foundation as things change over and over and over again, then we are free to enjoy change.
I will transition in 8 short weeks to mom, my life as an individual, doing what I want, when I want, will be done, and that is pretty unnerving, but I know that because my identity in Christ never changes, I can have a firm foundation in any transition or change. And I can sit back and enjoy the ride.
Kacy Davis lives in Fort Worth, Texas with her husband, Collin. She is a special education teacher and advocate of those with special needs and loves her job. She spends her time riding bikes with her husband, running, reading, and enjoying those she loves. Kacy believes in reinventing what it means to be a woman and wife who loves the Lord and longs to help others learn to love the Lord with abandon, freedom, and a greater understanding of grace. She writes here.
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Hello Kacy – You are going to LOVE being a mom. You’re right, your life will never be the same. I have three grown, married children – all grown up and independent and with children of their own. But, they are still my children. Still my babies. That child that will soon come into your lives and consume your time and your thoughts and your heart….he/she will never stop consuming your thoughts, time, heart. You are forever linked to him/her. Just as we are forever linked to our Creator.
If we, as imperfect moms and dads can love with such a lasting, consuming love….I find it hard to even begin to imagine how deep the love is that God/Jesus has for us. I think I have only begun to scratch the surface of it. It is beyond my thinking – bigger than my heart can even take in. It is like thinking of eternity …..too vast, too beyond the realm of how my little brain thinks. His love is vast. And your love for this child….it will be vast as well. Nothing that child says or does will ever be able to keep you from loving him/her. Nothing. You are forever linked. It’s an amazing thing. I’m excited for you. Thank you for writing from your heart.
Kacy, I love your take on transitions. I am thinking about the ones I’ve made and the ones that lie ahead. All the best to you as your heart continues to transition into a mother’s heart…know this is just the beginning. I’m looking forward to what God lays on your heart to write about next.
Transition speaks of vision…a moving forward….might bring on a sense of wonder….curiosity…..challenge…. and yes we can sit back and enjoy the ride.
Knowing who we are in Him.
Beautiful thoughts Kacy.
Transitions ….they come whether we want them or not. Remembering what is constant feels like a kind place for my heart to land in the midst of the transitions. Thanks Kacy.