The Shepherd’s Care for Mothers ~ Green Pastures for Weary Mothers
One of my favorite books on Psalm 23 is the children's devotional Sammy and His Shepherd by Susan Hunt. I love it so much that I've sent it home with families in our church through Easter events and activities. During COVID, I even read it on Facebook as a way to stay connected with the children in our church.
These last few days, though, I've had the joy of reading it to my three-year-old granddaughter. While she's learning the characters and storyline, we're also learning Psalm 23 together. As I pause at the end of each line, she eagerly fills in the words— “my Shepherd”...“green pastures.” There is something wonderfully sweet about hearing that little voice hide God's Word in her heart.
In the story, Sammy is a little sheep under the care of the Good Shepherd. He befriends another sheep who lives in a different pasture under an uncaring shepherd. While Sammy's Shepherd knows him by name and lovingly provides everything he needs, the other sheep has no name, and her pasture is dry and barren, lacking green grass and clean water.
Sammy realizes that because his shepherd has provided for him, he can rest. His pasture is full of nourishment and refreshment, and it is safe because the Shepherd makes it so.
Psalm 23 paints the same beautiful picture for us.
He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
One of the hardest things for mothers to receive is rest.
There is always one more thing to do, one more person to help, one more mess to clean, one more worry to carry. Even when our bodies are still, our minds continue racing. We easily forget that we already live in the Shepherd's pasture, surrounded by His provision and care. Instead, we begin living as though everything depends on us, carrying burdens we were never meant to bear.
Yet our Shepherd, who knows us by name, gently invites us to rest.
David says that the Shepherd makes His sheep lie down. He does not do this to hinder them but to restore them. Sheep will not rest when they are frightened, hungry, or anxious. A good shepherd removes what troubles them so they can finally lie down in peace.
What a beautiful picture of God's tender care.
You have a Good Shepherd who cares for you while you care for your children.
The green pastures speak of His provision, and the still waters remind us of His peace. Through His Word He feeds our hungry souls. In prayer, He quiets our anxious hearts. In worship with His people, He reminds us that we are not walking alone. These are not optional extras for busy mothers; they are the very means our Shepherd uses to nourish and restore us.
The challenge is that many of us begin to think of rest as something we have to earn. We quietly tell ourselves, I'll rest when the laundry is finished, when the kitchen is clean, when everyone else has what they need. Yet somehow the work is never really finished, and rest keeps moving farther out of reach.
God's pattern is very different.
Rest is not a reward for accomplishing enough. It is a gift from our Shepherd because He knows our limitations.
What resting in Him looks like will vary with each season of motherhood. A mother caring for a newborn may have only a few quiet moments while the baby sleeps. A mother of school-aged children may treasure those early morning minutes before the house wakes up to open her Bible and meet with the Lord. A mother of teenagers may turn the drive home from activities into a time of quiet prayer rather than anxious thoughts. A mother of adult children may return again and again to God's promises as she entrusts sons and daughters she can no longer protect to the Shepherd who loves them even more than she does.
What rest looks like will change, but the invitation remains the same: stay close to the Shepherd.
Build simple rhythms that continually lead your heart back to Him. Before reaching for your phone in the morning, reach for His Word. Pause throughout the day to pray—not because everything is falling apart, but because you are remembering that you are not carrying your family alone. Guard the Lord's Day as a precious gift. Gather with God's people to worship, hear His Word, receive His promises, and be reminded once again that Christ is faithfully caring for both you and your children.
Your children are watching these rhythms more than you realize. They learn not only from what you teach but from how you live. When they see you turn to Scripture before turning to social media, pray before panicking, worship even when life feels overwhelming, and entrust your worries to the Lord, they begin to understand where true peace is found. They learn that rest is not laziness but trust, and that peace is not found in having everything under control but in depending on the Good Shepherd who does.
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
What keeps you from resting in the Shepherd today? Is it busyness, guilt, or the belief that everything depends on you? What is one simple step you can take this week to spend time in God's Word, prayer, or worship so your soul can rest again in His green pastures?
PRAYER
Good Shepherd, thank You for leading me into green pastures and beside still waters. Forgive me for living as though everything depends on me. Quiet the noise in my heart and teach me to receive Your rest as a gift rather than something I must earn. Nourish me through Your Word, refresh me in prayer, and strengthen me through worship with Your people. Help me create a home where my children experience both Your provision and Your peace as they watch me follow You. Amen.
Sherry Kendrick has served as the Family Ministry Director at Covenant Church of Naples in Naples, Florida, for more than sixteen years. She has spent over forty-five years investing in children and families through children's ministry, homeschooling, private education, and public education. Sherry is passionate about helping parents disciple their children through God's Word. She has a lifelong love of children's books and curriculum—so much so that collecting them has become one of her favorite hobbies.
For thirty-six years, Sherry served alongside her husband, Mike, in pastoral ministry in both small and large churches. Since his passing, she has continued to serve the church with a deep confidence in the Good Shepherd's faithful care. She is the grateful mother of three grown children and “Nana” to four beloved grandchildren.
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Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.
