by Samantha Muthiah
Melanie recently shared an excellent series about our motivations in relation to discipleship, specifically in the context of women with young children at home.
She talked about in some seasons of life, such as the season of caring for young children, it can be hard to apply this to reality.
For our encouragement, here are some practical considerations about how you might incorporate discipleship into your routine as a mum:*
* If you are a younger women who is interested in being discipled, you might be able to suggest some of these ideas to a mother you know. Or perhaps you are an older woman and your children are out of the house, you might consider these ideas in terms of how you might be able to encourage other women.
Ok, down to business! First, consider your weekly routine. Are there any regular activities or times during the week you could consider inviting a younger woman to be a part of? Keep in mind that there is value in helping other women to learn how to look after children in a practical way, whilst also talking about the gospel and encouraging one another.
For example, could you:
- invite someone over for dinner/kids bed time on a regular basis, and spend some time together after the kids are asleep?
- invite someone to come grocery shopping with you, and talk as you walk?
- take someone with you when you do errands or the school run?
- invite someone to wait with you whilst the kids are playing sport or having swimming lessons etc.?
- invite someone to go to the park with you and chat whilst the children play, or walk with the children in a stroller?
- invite someone over during nap time? Or during afternoon play time?
Also consider whether there are any other special events or activities coming up that could involve a younger woman, e.g. invite someone on a special outing, e.g. to the zoo, on a road trip, or on a family vacation.
Consider the routine of the person you would like to spend time with. Are there times in their routine you could take advantage of? For example, if you want to spend time with a young woman who is of high-school age, perhaps you can pick her up from school and go for ice-cream – hopefully you can chat whilst the kids’ mouths are full of ice-cream. 
Lastly, if you still haven’t found inspiration or are feeling overwhelmed, don’t despair!
Remember, most people LOVE to help but just need to know how. Consider inviting someone over to talk and help you at the same time. Is your laundry out of control? Ask them to bring their iron. Ask someone to come and help you cook.
We hope that this series on discipling as a mother with young children has been encouraging and helpful to you.
Do you have other practical suggestions?
We’d love to hear them in the comments!
ABOUT THE WRITER
Samantha was born in Brisbane, Australia and now lives in the Middle East. She’s married to Lenny, a pastor at Redeemer Church of Dubai. Nowadays most of her time is spent cuddling their exceedingly adorable baby Amara Grace. Samantha’s creative mind is always swirling with resources, new ideas, green living and new recipes involving peanut butter.
