Author Rebekah Hargraves Explains That If You're a Mother, You're a Theologian
Many women feel that between meals, keeping house, getting kids to and from school and extracurricular activities, managing budgets and trying to find time for exercise and that looming declutter project, it’s almost impossible to find time to grow in the Word.
If you’re a mother, you know how important it is to stay grounded in the Bible amid the chaos of life, but it can be hard enough getting through a daily devotional, let alone feeling like you are a true Berean.
Rebekah Hargraves, the author of Lies Moms Believe (And How the Gospel Refutes Them), wrote this week in The Christian Post that while she writes extensively about how mothers can become theologians, they often don’t know how.
Well, she explains, if you’re a mom raising your children in a Christ-centered home, you already are one!
Your theology refers to what you believe about God. Whether you are an atheist who doesn’t believe in the existence of God at all or a seminary professor teaching God’s truth at a deep and profound level, you are a theologian.
The reality is that you as a mom are teaching theology to your children day in and day out by the way you live your life and the words you say, the things you prioritize and what you idolize. The question is not whether or not you will be a theologian. The real question is this: are you teaching good and right, accurate and true theology or are you teaching false theology?
Hargraves offers some tips on how to be a good theologian as a mother:
- Be in the Word: “I know this pursuit may very well feel impossible in your current season as a busy mom,” she assures, but explains that, with the many luxuries of modern technology and constant access to the Bible at our fingertips every moment, there are many ways we can learn to incorporate the Scripture into our daily lives.
- Share the Word: “We have to know the truths of God’s Word ourselves, but the natural outworking of that is to then share that Word with others – first and foremost being with our kids,” she says, explaining that the best way to do this is not always through rigorous daily readings or Bible curriculum for your children, but rather by infusing God’s wisdom into everyday situations, from settling sibling squabbles to explaining where flowers come from.
- Live the Word: “If our children don’t see the impact the Word of God is having in our hearts and lives in a tangible way, they will struggle to believe in its validity.” Phew. Enough said!
“When we walk by the Spirit, abide in Christ, following God’s direction, spend time in His Word, and apply it naturally to every issue which arises in our day to day lives, we will be living as good theologians,” Hargraves concludes.
“Just imagine what kind of amazing impact a mom, by God’s grace, can have on her children when she lives in such a way! There is no end to what the Spirit of God can accomplish in the lives of her children!”
Amen!
