Baby Breath

John 20:19-23

19 … Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

After Jesus was crucified, his disciples were afraid—this new chapter didn’t feel so great. The doubts crept in. They hid in fear. In this passage, Jesus finds them and greats them - “Peace be with you.” In other words, perhaps, “I forgive you.”

He breathes purpose and assurance back into their lives.

When I was in the trenches with littles, there were more moments than I’d like to admit when I wondered if I’d taken the wrong path. I was afraid. Had I not listened to God correctly about this Mom life? I thought becoming a mother would make me feel purposeful, but at the end of the day I often just felt so tired and so worn down. The day-after-day cook, clean, fix, help, felt more like regression than an exciting new chapter.

But just like Jesus met His disciples in their fear and uncertainty, He meets us in ours. He steps into the locked rooms of our hearts and breathes peace and purpose into us.

When you feel your thoughts falling, look up for His signs and you’ll hear Him. “Peace be with you,” He says—right there in the chaos of the kitchen, the mess of the playroom, and in the stillness of your baby’s breaths at 2 a.m. in the nursery.

This work—the repetitive, humble, loving service—is not a regression. It’s resurrection work.

So take heart, mama. The world needs you. Let your baby’s breath always be a reminder of Jesus’s Easter promise.

Emily

Want more? Read Matthew’s version of the resurrection story in Matthew 28:1-20.