Missional Motherhood: The Bible Study {Review}

I have caught myself saying, "I'm just a mom" often when people ask what I do. It's ingrained in me to include the word just, as if I need to downplay the role I've been given, apologize for seeming like I don't have much to offer, or defend myself in some way. It's not intentional. It's kind of become my go-to phrase when I get asked the question about what I do. I'm just a mom. It just flows right out. But going through Gloria Furman's Missional Motherhood:  The Bible Sudy:  The Everday Ministry of Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God has been exactly what my soul needed to realize there is no just being a mom. There is no just in any aspect of our callings, of our parts in the greater redemption story, of our roles in going and making disciples of all nations. And being that we are a week away from the due date of daughter #2, I'm so very glad to have gone through this study.

Don't mind the doodles on the cover, it just shows my toddler enjoyed the study as well. :)

Throughout the Missional Motherhood study, Gloria Furman states:  "Jesus invites women to missional motherhood:  to follow His pattern, to trust His promises, and to nurture others by the power He provides." It is the theme of the study. And she does a great job of allowing the truth of Scripture to continually ​show this theme to be true. The study is filled with Scripture, wisdom, and encouragement. 

It can be done individually or in a group setting. And it is split into six different sessions: 

Session 1:  Introduction
Session 2: Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God:  Nurturing Life in the Face of Death
Session 3:  New Creation Life in Christ is the New Normal
Session 4:  The Priestess Next Door
Session 5:  The King's New Creation
Session 6:  Missional Motherhood Reaches From the Home to the World

Each session starts off with a short (around 10 minutes) video (found through Lifeway) and discussion/reflection questions, and then four lessons follow it, although the sixth session doesn't have any lessons after it.

​Some of my favorites quotes found throughout the study are:

"Every Christian woman is called to the spiritual motherhood of making disciples of all nations." (page 10)

"Mothering work is missional because God created us, and He ordained every single one of our ministries to bring glory to Himself. God has incorporated us into His global mission." (page 18)

"As we go about the good work God has designed for us (and designed us for), we suffer many afflictions. It is out of the comfort we receive from Christ that we mother and disciple others." (page 41)

"He is pleased to be glorified through us even when we are not pleased to be who He made us or live in the circumstances He has orchestrated." (page 50)

"Because God is sovereign, we have all been handed an Esther-like opportunity to magnify Christ in our lives 'for such a time as this' (Esth. 4:14). God has given you those specific children and disciples with those needs for such a time as this." (page 72)

"Even our obedience to God and sacrifical service to Him is ordained, enabled, and empowered by Him.  Everything--yes, everything--is from Jesus, through Jesus, and to Jesus." (page 78)

"Homemaking is a strategic everyday ministry designed by God to adorn His gospel in this age where the new creation has broken into the old age....our homemaking, when carried out in light of the cosmic ramifications of the resurrection of Jesus, is a ministry that can shake the gates of hell." (page 90)

"As easy as it is to get sucked back in to the course of this world or discouraged by the mundance of every day life, we need to keep our focus on things that are unseen." (page 92)

"In our everyday mothering ministry, Christ's lordship over the world and His ongoing activity in the world come to light." (page 96)

"Titus 2 is not about how Christian women need to be domestic goddesses; it's about how Christian women point people to God through their homes. That is what accords with sound doctrine--the gospel. Faithfulness in the practical matters of loving our husband and children and managing our homes honors the gospel and shows the world the beauty of the gospel. We don't manage our homes because our homes are our hope. We manage our homes because Christ is our hope." (page 100)

I was pleasantly surprised by this study. I'm not quite sure what I expected, maybe I was thinking it would be more in terms of looking at practical aspects of motherhood. But this truly was a lesson in Biblical theology (which I loved and so appreciated). Gloria takes you through redemptive history. She allows the big picture of God's story, of the gospel, to speak truth and life into the calling of motherhood. In fact, there were many times I forgot it was a study on motherhood, and just found myself enamored with the gospel, with the words of Truth, with the way God has worked through the ages and how He chooses to work now.  It was as if any follower of Christ could go through this study and be deeply encouraged and have their faith strengthened. Of course, there were elements throughout where Gloria showed how the overall story of redemptive history and the Kingdom of God are tied to motherhood. She looks to God's faithfulness in the past but also ahead to our glorious future with Christ. And in doing so, she shows how motherhood has been and continues to be part of God's grand plan. 

I found it incredibly refreshing that she made the point that any woman in the family of God is included in this calling of missional motherhood. So no matter how you came into motherhood, whether biologically, through adoption, or spiritual mentoring, this study is for you. No matter what your motherhood journey looks like, you will not feel left out in any way in this study. Every woman who follows Jesus Christ is called to make disciples and is part of this calling of missional motherhood. 

If you're looking for a step by step process on helping you in daily motherhood, this isn't going to be it. This study focuses on the bigger picture. This study looks to our call of making disciples and how that truly encompasses motherhood. I found it to be humbling and convicting while also encouraging and empowering. It is a beautiful reminder of who God is and what He has done and will do, and who we are and what we are called to do. Missional Motherhood has helped shape my perspective on being a mom. I'm so grateful for it. 

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​Missional Motherhood is going to be Lifeway Women's Fall Online Bible Study. You can sign up to participate here. It begins September 29, and they are generously including the videos as part of it! In fact, they will leave the videos up until December 1 for those who need to get caught up or watch later on. If this study interests you, you should definitely pick up a copy and sign up to be part of the online community going through it, or gather some friends and dive into it together for six weeks. It will be worth it!

Follow Gloria Furman on Twitter and Instagram.
You can find her website here.

And you can buy the Bible Study and the book here below!
​(You'll support me by clicking and buying here below because it is linked to my Amazon Associates affiliate account. Thanks in advance!)

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Disclaimer:  I was given this book by the publisher for an honest review.