maturity — Blog — Tabitha Deller

The Beauty of Becoming…

One day you will be older and wiser, and yet not that long ago, you were young hungry.

I’m not sure what’s best, but I think it’s probably best to learn from both.

Biblically, they both have place and purpose in the family of God, and they both can be used powerfully by God to further His Kingdom.

“Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.” ~ 1 Timothy‬ ‭4:12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.” ~ Titus‬ ‭2:3-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬

So learn and grow older and wiser, but keep growing and learning as you stay young and hungry.

Grow in maturity, and as you grow more mature, always be open to learning more. Never think you’ve arrived. Always be teachable, because when you are, others are more reachable.

Embrace the age you are now. Celebrate where you’ve been. Anticipate where you’re headed. It’s a wildly beautiful process.

We experience the best of both worlds when we learn to live in the tension of the two, and then live to learn from the tension of the two. Don’t despise the one you’re not yet and don’t neglect the one you once were.

Step into multigenerational spaces. No matter your age or life stage, always have someone older and wiser pour into you, so you can overflow and pour into someone that’s young and hungry.

Live to grow. Grow to live. At every age and life stage.

“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” ~ Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3‬:‭11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

News flash, mommas, we are not perfect. In fact, we’re far from it. And quite honestly, our kids aren’t looking for our perfection, but rather our intention in the right direction.

In the first picture, we’re all standing tall (some more than others) with the effects of age taking center stage — height for the boys coupled with the depth of their voice, while Steve and I have aged with wrinkles and greys and in a few more subtle ways.

In the second picture, we’re all sitting and they were all small. And just as we were on the same level that day, we were together frequently, and we functioned as a team rather succinctly.

But more than the obvious differences in these two photos are the character differences. Can you spot those?

Because that’s where it’s at. That’s what matters most. We will never be perfect, but we’ll always be perfectly positioned to learn and grow.

The years between these photos bring meaning to this post. The differences are far more than physical, and this momma is grateful for the lessons learned in hindsight.

It’s never too late to learn, and we will never stop growing and maturing in our God-given roles and responsibilities.

They see us trying. So, keep trying, momma, and never give up. Sitting or standing, small or tall, the heart lessons are the hardest to learn, but they’ll outlast the physical differences well beyond the wrinkles and greys and passing Mother’s Days.

So, stay the course, and glance back every now and then, not to be sad they’re grown, but to be glad they’re known — seen and loved. Take time to spot the differences, notice the growth, and celebrate the change.

Look back to keep going forward. Find security in the seasons of maturity and beauty in the hindsight.

“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.” ~ 1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:12‬