The house is dark, the floor creaks as you pad from the baby’s crib to the couch, your eyes burn as you press “start” on the timer that tracks how long the baby eats. It’s 3:00 AM again.
The first few weeks with an infant are tough. Your whole routine is thrown out of whack, your body is tired, and it can feel impossible to find even 5 minutes to spend in prayer.
Everything is new all the time, routines are tricky, and old habits can be laid aside.
That’s what happened to me.
When Your Prayer Routine Disappears
All my usual cues to pray were gone. I woke up so many times, I didn’t know when my day started or when it was coming to a close. I didn’t know when to pray a morning offering or to say my evening prayers.
I didn’t have a long, uninterrupted quiet time to just sit in the presence of the Lord.
I wondered if a newborn meant the end of my prayer life. If I had entered a season where I don’t talk to God, don’t fill myself with his Word.
That couldn’t be the case. It is so important to talk to God if you want a relationship with him, and as Christians we are called to a relationship with the Father.
Lonely Delirium of the 3 AM Feeding
As a breastfeeding mom, I spent hours every night under my baby. My husband couldn’t help with feedings, so I had to wake up every time she needed to eat.
For a while, I was delirious. Every time I woke up, I was convinced she was stuck somewhere in our blankets. My husband would point to the crib where she was swaddled and fast asleep.
Sometimes, I cried when the baby cried.
I didn’t know where God was. I felt abandoned by him. Left alone with a baby that needed the best of me.
I felt like I was not enough, that I wasn’t doing enough.
I was overwhelmed, and I couldn’t even get up to grab my Bible.
Finding the Word on a Glowing Screen
Enter the blessing of modern technology.
I use my phone to track baby’s diapers and feeding times. It is always nearby when she is eating.
One night, while feeling bad about scrolling as baby ate, I remembered the Bible app. I realized what a blessing this app was for a tired mom. It was always nearby, the screen of my phone glowed so I could read in the dark, and I didn’t need six hands to hold open a book.
I could open the Word and be fed while feeding my daughter.
And that’s what I did.
Groping for God in the Dark
We were still in the Easter season, so I was reading from the Acts of the Apostles. At one point, Paul preaches to the Athenians about the one, true God.
“He made from one the whole human race to dwell on the entire surface of the earth, and he fixed the ordered seasons and the boundaries of their regions, so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though indeed he is not far from any one of us.” – Acts 17:26-27
He is not far from any one of us.
God is always nearby, always waiting for the moment I turn to him. Each time I turn, He has already beckoned. Already called my name.
I don’t have to go anywhere or do anything special to access God. I don’t have to say the right words or follow the right prayer routine.
He hears me. He’s waiting for me to come looking for Him.
Learning to Pray Like a Child Again
God wants to hear our struggles. He delights in every moment of our lives and wants us to share it with Him.
Think of a toddler who has finally learned to speak. They tell you EVERYTHING without holding back, and they aren’t afraid to ask for anything.
You should do that with the Lord. As the scripture says, “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3).
Now, I try to tell the Lord when I am struggling. I thank Him for the joys, but also share the sorrows. He knows real, human pain, and can relate to all of my sufferings.
I pray for my baby, and for my family. I pray for strength, wisdom and peace to get through this season.
I try to pray out loud often to include my baby in these prayers. Soon, I will be teaching her to talk to God, too.
Your Experience With Prayer
If you are currently figuring out how to pray with a newborn or dealing with spiritual exhaustion, know you are not alone.
So many moms feel the same way, and God is waiting there to walk with you in this season. He has not abandoned you.
I want to know about your experience with prayer during the newborn stage. If you have, or have had, a newborn, how are you getting through the hazy, postpartum season?
Have you experienced God or His peace in the most overwhelming moments?
Let me know if you have any tips or tricks for daily prayer for moms during this beautiful, exhausting season of life.
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