Being ‘Mom’ without having a mom can make not just Mother’s Day but any day of motherhood a bit difficult. Every new and happy milestone my children face often comes tainted with a smidge of grief, envy, fear, and even resentment. Every new season comes with unanswered questions too. What did she do when I was this age? How did she manage this situation? How did she discipline that behavior? What advice did she follow? I’ll never know.

But I’ve learned over my years as a motherless mother that even without my own mom’s support and presence, God has been faithful. He holds us close (Psalm 27:10). He bandages our wounds (Psalm 147:3). He carries our tears in a bottle (Psalm 56:8). And He knows how to redeem and how to comfort. In fact, so many scriptures tells us of God’s mother-like qualities: “as a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you” (Isaiah 66:13).

So, whatever your circumstances are this week, whether your mother has passed away, whether she is physically or emotionally distant, whether you have conflict, or for whatever reason she is incapable of being there for you this Mother’s Day, take all your feelings about it to God. Let Him hold you. Let Him carry you. He is for you and will be what you lack.

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” (Isaiah 49:15)

*First published by The Joyful Life Magazine.