Wherever She Goes

St. Edith Stein talks about the role of the woman to teach and show man how to live. She cultivates, guards, and develops all men by the fruitfulness within her, by the impregnation of Christ into the world. How does a mother plant the seed of virtue? By creating a space for God to dwell around the person she is giving to. Every woman is a mother who needs to be a daughter who is mothered and a mother who gives. Some seasons we need to be mothered and at other moments we give as a mother. This space we create is the fundamental piece and success of being that mother who gives life. Our children need us to be in our best form but even then we fall short and must keep pointing to God and Mamma Mary. Even in our failure, that space is humble because we are giving God the room to work. His action within us moves the heart of man to wonder and awe. It is from this place that He can lead and feel confident in his manhood and be a civilized individual with the companionship and love that his heart searches for.

God’s work is illustrated the most in the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Theotokos, the God-bearer, but all women share in that role. We are impregnated with grace and that grace also begets children. Life develops within us both metaphorically and physically. The challenge is to develop after the fashion of Mary who had a heart constantly dwelling with the Holy Spirit. We are very sensitive to the movements around us and see firsthand how we can serve. The call is to lead the heart to charge forward in obedience to the Word. It is the slow everyday action that guides us to the presence of God. This presence needs to be given to those in our care. We bring life. We bring vitality. We enliven. Without animation, how can one move forward with any dream or action?

Why do we have one of the largest epidemics in our age of depression and anxiety? I propose that it is because we have forgotten how to be mothered. In a culture where man is woman and woman is man we have lost our identity. We have a culture who is competing for a position of control not the heart of a servant who raises others to leadership. Now is one of the most important times in history to do exactly that to those around us. They NEED us to mother. They need us to cultivate the soil of hearts to be fertile ground for God to plant Himself within us. He is the one who gives life and without Him, everything is empty and naught. The void in our culture is the competition for the best place. Ironically, when we stop the competition, we actually find ourselves in the best place. It’s not a matter of control but of blossoming into the role we are given. This fullness leads to gratitude and wherever gratitude is, sorrow flees.

I want to challenge you right now to quiet your heart, wherever and whoever you are to God’s action. Make room around you for His presence. In this, we will find peace and contentment. That is attractive like honey to flies. LIVE this. DWELL. Dwelling brings joy and life in the drought around us. Be a fountain of grace welling forth for the tide of change to make the desert fertile. This is a battleground because, since the beginning of creation, we have been at enmity with the serpent. He knows he is losing the battle. The more we live out our vocation, the more the enemy will flee. He can’t and will not win if we join the woman trodding on his head. That is why we are under such an attack now. He is trying to steal the victory from us. He knows if he can bring one woman down, he can bring many more down with him.

So now that you know, find how to cultivate life around you. What about that friend that just lost a loved one? Or the lonely neighbor down the street? What about that friend going through a tough time or health problems? In this culture of death, be a beacon of hope. This is not the end game. We are sojourners waiting for our true home; heaven. Why not bring as many as we can? How can I champion you through life right now? How can I birth your dream and your begetting life? Prayer is the key piece to cultivating soil. We need to become intercessors and pools of relief; that oasis in the desert. Wherever the mother goes, so follow her children.