Be You, Bravely

This post has been sitting in my drafts for nearly a year and since a new year of MOPS is upon us, starts Tuesday in fact, I figured it was high time I wrapped this one up.

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You guys I joined MOPS this year! And to say it's been a blessing is a bit of an understatement. We meet two Tuesdays a month at our church, and every Tuesday I come home and thank Peter for letting me spend the money on joining this group! It doesn't cost much but it was an extra expense we hadn't taken into account when budgeting, and the cost far outweighs the benefits.

What is MOPS you ask?

It stands for Mothers of Preschoolers - simply kids from birth to kindergarten. And according to the MOPS website, "MOPS is a grassroots movement that believes moms are world influencers. We also believe that incubating hearts and giving just-because-hugs can change the course of history. That's why we connect moms all over the world to a community of women, in their own neighborhoods, who meet together to laugh, cry, and embrace the journey of motherhood. MOPS groups are rallying women to be more honest, to feel more equipped and to find our identity by journeying along side one another."

The theme this year is Be You, Bravely, and the verse that accompanies that theme is this one.

This theme and verse fit the theme of my life so perfectly right now, yet at the time, I didn't realize just how perfectly until Ryan was in the hospital and this post was written - Be Strong and Courageous.

During our first MOPS session, one of my fellow MOPS moms shared about herself and her story bravely by sharing the characteristics that make her who she is. And after she was finished, I couldn't help but wonder what it looks like to truly BE ME? What are my characteristics? What does it look like to live bravely? And am I doing it?

So then of course, I came home and made a list of all the things that make me me.

I am a child of God.
I am a wife.
I am a mother.
I am a sister.
I am a friend.
I am a peacemaker.
I am honest.
I am a truth teller.
I tend to overshare.
I try to control things...and my husband more than I should.
I let chaos in my house stress me out.
I am a doer and I have a really hard time just being. 
I am a reader, but I don't read as much as I'd like to right now.
I have a scar on my stomache that marks my eldest sons entrance into the world.
I get mean when I'm hungry.
I am selfish.
I am the mother of a preemie.
I live in the uncertainty every day right now for fear that this 2nd baby will have the same story as the 1st. (Praise the Lord that the 2nd had his own story, along with his own NICU stay!)
I am a proud boy mom.
I am a person that loves deeply and lives passionately.
And I am extremely vulnerable. 

And then I began to wonder, what would happen if we all shared our issues with each other...if we were all open and honest and vulnerable with each other...if we all shared our struggles and our joys. What would it look like to live in that space of vulnerability all the time? What would it look like to encourage others to do the same? Wouldn't it just be so freeing? And am I doing that?

During the second MOPS session we shared a photo and a story of a time when we were brave. You guys, I brought a picture of Jack in the NICU, all strapped up to machines and a feeding tube as he just laid in his little incubator. And I shared with them his birth story, everything leading up to it and everything that happened after it. And as I shared that story, I was reminded of just how brave I was and just how brave and courageous I can always be ...by the grace of God.

So tell me...Who are you? And what would your brave moment be? And what does it look like to be you, bravely?