A Mother’s Day Blessing For All Women – A Conversation with My Mom (Encore)

Dave Anthold: Hi there, everyone. I'm a super excited today because my mother is coming on the podcast. It is a Mother's Day and we are celebrating with this very special episode for all of you. And she is guest numero uno. So no pressure mom, but we are so excited that you are here with us today.

Marilyn Anthold: Thank you for having me.

Dave Anthold: So as we jump into it, why don't we just get a little bit of information about you? I'm not going to ask you your age, but how long have you been a believer and how long have you been married?

Marilyn Anthold: I was fortunate enough to be raised in a Christian home, and I came to the Lord when I was five. And four years later, I was baptized on Easter Sunday and have been walking with him ever since. And I've been married 52 years.

Dave Anthold: Whoop. When did you start praying for your children?

Marilyn Anthold: Your father and I began praying for you and your brother when we found out we were expecting you. And then from there on, we've been praying for all of you ever since.

Dave Anthold: That's because we need a lot of prayer folks. That's why they keep praying. We just talked about praying for your kids. So, what are a couple of things that mothers or aspiring mothers can do to begin the habit of praying for their children?

Marilyn Anthold: For me, it's beginning the day with the Lord in prayer. Just talking to him as I talk to my family, to my friends. He already knows my heart. He knows my thoughts before I even speak them. But in a conversational way, letting him know what I'm feeling, where I'm at, my concerns for myself, for my family, what's going on around me. Just being truly intentional of bringing everything to him.

Dave Anthold: Is that something that you write down, that you talked out loud, that you're thinking through?

Marilyn Anthold: Well, in the beginning it was a verbal things when you were small and I didn't have a lot of time. It was a quick sometimes, arrow prayers as we call them. But now that I have more free time, I find myself writing them all out. I find that I can concentrate and just seems to draw closer. I begin by sitting before him and just letting him speak to me, but then just sharing from my heart what's on my heart with him.

Dave Anthold: So for the busy mom that is shuttling kids around, working, educating their kids, getting the family ready, the family dinners, that sort of thing, how can they begin to develop a habit of praying for their kids while life is super busy?

Marilyn Anthold: My best advice for you would be to spend time in his word. I know when moms are so very busy, you don't have lots of time to sit and have a long quiet time. But maybe for me, it was reading a Proverb and a Psalm each day that went along with the time of the date for having a quick devotional that maybe takes no more than five, seven minutes. Having like YouVersion on your phone, where if you're waiting for your children to get out of a practice, you can look at the word, you can meditate on what it's saying, you can be praying for your children that way. It doesn't have to be a long lengthy thing. It should be more of a conversation with you and the Lord.

Dave Anthold: Great advice. For you, what does it mean to be honored?

Marilyn Anthold: That my family respects me as a person, not just as their mother, but as a woman. I've been truly blessed at that. I feel I was cherished by my husband and my two sons. But I think just knowing that they respect me as a person and trying to set a godly example before them, so I can be someone they would want to respect. For me, when they left everyday to go to school or to work, it's always saying, I love you as they're walking out the door because you never know. There could come a time when they wouldn't be coming back home and I never wanted them to not maybe be the last thing they heard from me.

Dave Anthold: There are a lot of women that want to have children. And in fact, some women have lost children as well. And I know that's part of your story. And I'm wondering if you would share that story with us, as well as any other advice that you have in for moms, aspiring moms that want to have children as well.

Marilyn Anthold: I got pregnant the first time and we began diligently praying. And then, I miscarried at six months and it was very hard because I wasn't sure that we would ever be able to have children again. I didn't know God's plan. I knew that we wanted children, but we didn't know if that would be possible, if that would be God's plan for us. Our doctors assured us that we could, but you don't know God's plan. So, we prayed diligently. But the thing I prayed for the most during that time is that if it was not to be that God would fill me with a contentment and joy of just being my husband and myself, and that we would be able to reach out to other people and fulfill plans for their life, that God would use us however he saw fit.

Marilyn Anthold: I realized there are women out there who weren't as lucky. We did have two sons after that. But there are women out there who aren't as fortunate. And I would just say, what works for you, take it to the Lord. Number one, pray to him. Ask for his wisdom. Ask for peace and contentment. And that he would fill you with joy even if it isn't his plan for you to have children, that he would direct your life in a way that you would be fulfilled and find true joy.

Dave Anthold: What is one thing that you want all mothers to know or aspiring mothers to know that's really important to you that you've seen over the years?

Marilyn Anthold: Well, firstly, that they would be good to themselves first. I think it's important for a mother to be in a good place, to be take good care of herself, so that she has the ability then to give to her family. If she's not in a good place, it's really hard to meet the needs of the family. So whatever that looks like for you, and if you're a busy mom with really young children and kind of sleep deprived, those minutes are probably few and far between, but five minutes of doing something that you really love can make a big difference. Also, that you would have a safe friend. I was blessed to have a woman in my life, who has the same name that I have, who had three sons that were a little bit older. And I never had a sister, so she's the sister I never had.

Marilyn Anthold: And Marilyn was so great in my life because when I didn't have the answers or I was struggling with how to do certain things with my family, I could go to her. I could tell her anything. And she generally had the answer for me. And if she didn't, we prayed together over it. And it was just such an encouragement in my life as I tried to meet the needs of my growing family. And I hope that all of you out there listening have that kind of person in your life that's a safe place, that just can be your cheerleader and encourager and your strength as you pray together over your family. And then, for those women who maybe don't have it, I just want you to know that there are women around the world out there who are praying for you everyday that you will be the best mom that God created you to be, and that you are loved and supported in prayer by a lot of women. We're all in your corner and we've got your back.

Dave Anthold: That is great advice. So women, you are being loved on, you are being prayed for wherever you are. Whether it's by name or by group, you are being prayed for by other women. What is your hope for your children?

Marilyn Anthold: My hope for both of you is that you would fulfill the mission that God has for you, that he has blessed you with a global perspective and he has filled you with a joy in the jobs that he's selected for you. And we're incredibly blessed by watching you grow and mature. But I just pray that you will fulfill the mission that he has for you.

Dave Anthold: Well, our time has come to an end. Thank you mom for being on the podcast with us and being our first guest. So blessed and honored to have you join me for this podcast on Mother's Day. Ross and I are incredibly blessed to have you as our mother. We love you and we thank you for your prayers, for being the praying mom that you are, for lifting us up each and every day. It is certainly felt and appreciated more than anything. And so, we would be honored before we let you go if you would just pray a prayer of blessing and protection over the women that are listening to this podcast. Don't know who they are, but I just have a sense that there needs to be this prayer of blessing and protection for all those mothers out there.

Marilyn Anthold: I'd be delighted. Thank you for having me. Heavenly Father, we just thank you that you have gifted us with these precious lives that you have given into our hands. We open them to you. We give them back to you, Father. You know what's best. You know our hearts. And so, I just pray a special blessing for all the women who will hear this podcast that they would feel your love surrounding them, that they would feel your strength as they seek help for their families to guide them and lead them. And Father, we just pray that you would help them to realize how many women are praying for them each day. May they feel the joy and the love and the blessing that you have for each woman out there. And may she have a fabulous Mother's Day because you love her more than we can ever imagine. In your precious name, we pray with thanksgiving. Amen.