Here we are again. Another day that is meant to be wonderful, but for so many, it’s just painful. I think the secret is out by now, isn’t it?

These days are hard.

Whatever the hole looks like, it’s there. Through intention, through loss, through death, through choice, through neglect. The hole is attached to pain, questions, and feelings of isolation.

And whether we’ve said it out loud or not, we wonder where God fits in this mix. He’s our Father, right? Why would He create this massive maternal role in our lives if it doesn’t relate to Him?

In the Bible, God is referred to as our Shepherd. He keeps track of us. He scoops us up when we get lost or wander away. He makes us rest when we’ve pushed ourselves too far. He protects us when stuff comes our way that should never have been there. He tells to sit down and eat when things get crazy. He comforts, He protects, He cares for, He pursues.

Sounds kinda like a good mom, doesn’t it?

Don’t allow the truth to be twisted in your mind. Yes, God is our Father. But He encompasses every role and attribute we would ever need. He is not tied down to what a typical “Father” looks like. He is all of it. Everything. Strong, kind, just, merciful, righteous, compassionate, forgiving.

Never knew your mom? He knew you before the creation of the world. [Romans 8:29]

Abandoned or neglected by the woman who was supposed to raise you? He will never forsake you even if everyone else does. [Psalm 27:10]

Experiencing grief from the loss of your mom? He heals your broken heart and He binds your wounds. [Psalm 147:3]

Mourning the loss of a child who made you a mom? God is the strength of your heart, even if all the rest of you is falling apart. [Psalm 73:26]

Wondering if you’ll ever be a mom like you’d hoped? God’s plans for you are for a future that is full of hope. [Jeremiah 29:11]

If you’re dreading Mother’s Day, I know you feel like you’ve been cheated. Cheated out of what every son or daughter deserves to have. You are looking around at what feels like everyone else who has a beautiful relationship with their mom. Or they’ve now become a mother themselves, and based on their Instastory, you just know that they’re totally killing it. And you wonder what you must have done wrong to deserve what you’ve experienced. But hear me: you have access to the One who has already gotten it all right as your parent. God doesn’t play “good cop, bad cop.” He doesn’t have to switch hats to be your mom on one day and your dad on another. When you screw it up, when you need someone to listen, when you got the job, when you need to be held… He’s the One. He’s already proven Himself so trustworthy. He knows you best. He gets you, even when you don’t get you. He knows what you need when you have no clue. He knows when you need to be comforted and He knows when you need a push.

This Mother’s Day, if you are mourning the loss of this role in your life in anyway, do me a favor. Don’t torture yourself by spending the day on your phone. Don’t fall into the trap of comparison with a life that probably isn’t even real on social media. But in same breath, don’t fall into yourself, either. Get with your people. If you don’t have people, find some. Remind each other that you are not alone, because YOU ARE NOT ALONE. The world is more full of broken people with broken relationships in need of a perfect God than it is happy family photos.

The truth is, the women in our lives will fail us, and we will inevitably fail those around us, too. Let’s prepare ourselves this time. We can’t protect ourselves from sadness or loss, but we can choose where we go when it happens. We can choose to look to the all-encompassing love of Jesus to totally overwhelm where they may have lacked. To step into the calling of a true daughter of God, who knows that her worth is based on His sacrifice and sufficiency.

He is so much more than enough.

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with loving kindness I have drawn you and continued My faithfulness to you.” [Jeremiah 31:3]