10 Habits of Happy Mothers

Hello Dr Meeker. 

I happened to pick up your book in the library recently, The 10 Habits of Happy Mothers, because the title sounded interesting.

I read the first few pages in the there, took it home and didn’t get back to it until I was dropping it off at the library 3 weeks later when it was due.  

As I went to the drive-up drop off box, it was early in the morning, so not many people were using it, something made me stop and decide to skim read.

I got to the last chapter on hope.  At that point, I pulled my car forward, found a parking spot, and read through the last chapter. WOW!

I have been experiencing a lack of hope lately and I did not expect to be hit between the eyes with it that morning, nor did I realize what it was that I was lacking until then.

I was relieved and happily so, because of how you introduced God into the picture as the foundation for that hope from which inward joy springs. I took the book back home, shared it with my husband, and am now rereading it.

Thank you for your work and your faithfulness. I am a registered pediatric and neonatal nurse who has been a stay at home mom for 12 years with our 4 children. I actually want to go back to school to become a pediatrician. My kids are between the ages of 8 and 14 years. My husband thinks I should go for it. Do you think this would be realistic?

Thank you!!

Signed,

Tanya

Dear Tanya,

Thank you for your letter. I love how God works- that He would gently nudge you in the early morning next to a drop box, to keep reading. That’s pretty cool.

I wrote the last chapter on hope for a specific reason. That is- to remind each of us mothers to constantly seek God for our future plans. So many of us become tangled in the stress of the moment that we find ourselves bogged down with a sense that nothing changes and that nothing good will ever come from our efforts. That is most certainly NOT true when we let God lead. Remember what He tells us through the prophet Jeremiah: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

We often forget to read the end of this beautiful promise that God gives us and that is to seek him with all of our hearts. No mumbo-jumbo pretense before friends or family. Just a deep heart search for God.

Here’s what I encourage you to do regarding your future in medicine because without knowing your home situation, it’s hard to advise you one way or another. Begin seeking God, not just His will for you. So many times we come to God and ask questions and beg for answers but the answers never come. So rather than seek a specific answer, try simply seeking Him. Try to see  His face and imagine what it must look like.  I can promise you that if you do this in a deeply personal way, you will never, ever be disappointed because He’s so good.

Bless you, my friend.

Dr. Meg