• Home
  • Blog
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Katie M. Reid

Finding Grace in the Unraveling of Life

  • Home
    • About
  • Books
    • Made Like Martha
    • A Very Bavarian Christmas
    • Judges Bible Study
  • Blog
    • Disclosure
  • Podcast
  • Speaking
  • Store
    • Resources
  • Singing
  • Contact
    • Privacy Policy

in Restoration Project· Writing

Restoration Project: Resting in Preparation

The Restoration Project 31 Day Series by Katie M Reid

Welcome to Day #20 of the Restoration Project.

This post is a little longer than usual, but I am being brave and sharing a section from my memoir-in-progress.

As you can imagine, the book’s theme is about being tightly wound. This section illustrates a key concept that I relearned this weekend, thanks to the lovely, smart and gracious Annie Downs and the one-of-a-kind, all powerful and wise Holy Spirit.

We’ve Only Just Begun?

I always wanted a daughter and was ecstatic not to be pregnant anymore, after my firstborn was delivered; no more back pain, no more protruding abdomen, no more wondering what labor would be like, or contemplating what gender we would have.

Adam cried with awe and joy, while I was thankful to be through labor…a big fat check-mark off my lengthy lifelong to-do list.

It felt like I had climbed Mt. Everest and I was basking in the accomplishment of what the Lord and I had done in that delivery room.

I was high on adrenaline and felt like Superwoman.

Then it dawned on me, like a blinding light that hurts your eyes as it blazes through the windows, the work was not over, it was just beginning. What?! But I had just climbed Mount Everest how could any more be expected, especially when I had just laid it all out on the table? Now I had to nurse this precious one and forego the sleep that was desperately needed?

It seemed unfair, unreal, and unbelievable.

Can we freeze time for a Zack Morris minute and regroup? Can I just take a nap? I had at least earned that, right?

Side note: The birthing class instructors should warn you that you will still look pregnant after delivering a baby. We had a sweet four year old from church come to visit in the hospital and she asked if the baby was still in there—in my tummy. Drop-kicking thoughts raced through my mind, and I wondered if jeans would ever be an option again.

I had the deflated saggy gut and the beautiful prize to prove it: I was now a mother.

I had crossed the finish line and produced satisfying results. However, this was not a sprint, or even a 10K, it was marathon—more like an ultra-marathon. An exhilarating and exhausting journey lay before me, requiring more than seemed possible.

Years later, as I was reading C.S. Lewis’ classic, The Horse and His Boy, I stumbled upon a beautiful illustration of motherhood.

A little context first…Aravis and Shasta are two runaways, on their way to warn King Lune of an impending attack. On their journey they are hounded by a lion and barely escape his clutches. Aravis is wounded and remains at the sanctuary of a kind hermit while she recovers. Before Shasta can catch his breath, the hermit tells him that he must waste no time in finding the King and warning him of the coming attack.

Here is the section that gave me pause:

Shasta’s heart fainted at these words for he felt he had not strength left and he writhed inside at what seemed the cruelty and unfairness of the demand. He had not yet learned that if you do one good deed your reward usually is to be set to do another and harder and better one. But all he said out loud was, ‘Where is the King?’”

HorseandBoyQuote

Not long after my daughter was born, as I laid in the delivery bed exhausted, relieved, and full of joy, I heard the words, “I think she’s ready to nurse” singing from one of the pediatric nurses. It struck me then, like a dissonant chord, that although the physical labor of childbirth was done, the labor of mothering was just beginning.

Lisa-Jo Baker describes this reality in Surprised by Motherhood, “A mother continues to labor long after the baby is born” (pg. 8).

I was overwhelmed with the magnitude of this news. Keep laboring? But I just did that.

Like Shasta, I wish I would have called out in that moment, “Where is the King?” Maybe not audibly, but in my soul, the place of greatest need. Because King Jesus was the only one who could prepare and sustain me for the task at hand, not just the nursing but the raising of this little life.

I thought I knew so much, but there was so much, still is so much, to learn.

I thought I arrived with the delivery of this life, but the King used her arrival to deliver me.

*excerpt from my memoir-in-progress

I share this story today to help illustrate a point that Annie Downs made this weekend at the Grace Adventures Women’s Retreat. She said something like this,

“What if this rest is not to recharge but to prepare you for the new thing that is coming?”

Annie referenced Jefferson Bethke’s new book, It’s Not What You Think and how he pointed out that Adam and Eve were created on the 6th day, so their first full day on earth was the seventh, when God rested.

Could it be they rested so that they were ready for what was to come?

Mind blown.

All this time, I thought that this month of the Restoration Project was to recover from a busy season, and while that may be partially its purpose, what if it’s more about preparing us for what’s to come—what’s next?

This thought is both exciting and a little exhausting. It reminded me of how I felt all those years ago in the delivery room. I had just given birth, which felt like such a big thing, but the really big thing—of raising a life—was just beginning. One challenging, yet wonderful event was followed but an even more challenging and wonderful season.

Maybe all this unwinding through rest and prayer is more about being prepared and equipped for what’s coming?

Are you preparing well?

Are you ready to welcome in the new thing, the next thing?

Signature for Katie M Reid

P.S. Get caught up on Days 1-19 of the Restoration Project. Linking this post with the #RaRaLinkup and #TellHisStory.

P.P.S. It was a delight to meet Annie and her assistant, Eliza, this weekend. Annie spoke about being brave, at the retreat. You can purchase her book, Let’s All Be Brave, through my DaySpring affiliate link (click on the Daysping image on the sidebar of this blog to get to their site. Then click on the ‘Gift Shop’ tab and then ‘Christian Living Books’ to find Annie’s book). Right now you can get free shipping (until tonight at 11:59pm)! Click on ‘Standard Shipping’ at checkout.

You can also download two chapters of Let’s All Be Brave for free (while you wait for the book to arrive on your doorstep) through this Noise Trade link.

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Filed Under: Restoration Project, Writing

Previous Post: « Restoration Project: You’re Still Invited
Next Post: Restoration Project: Don’t Edit Your Prayers »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tara says

    October 20, 2015 at 1:22 pm

    What a great post, Katie. Yes preparing and resting for what is yet to come. I like that though. And your Zack Morris reference made me smile. I Loved loved Annie’s book “Let’s All Be Brave.”

    • Katie says

      October 20, 2015 at 4:46 pm

      Thank you Tara. Glad you understood that reference, I wondered if I’d have to explain it further- ha! 🙂

  2. Julie Steck says

    October 20, 2015 at 2:21 pm

    Katie, I’m blown away. I too have been in a season of rest. I even posted about it yesterday…. Faith to Rest. As I’m trying to wrap my mind around it & obey I have felt this voice everywhere saying what you just wrote. ..yes, rest, but there is more to come. This is preparation. Sigh. Exciting. Humbling. Scary. Thank you for sharing. I look forward to your book!

    • Katie says

      October 20, 2015 at 4:47 pm

      Thank you Julie. Isn’t that crazy how God speaks to us from many angles and levels? Thanks for commenting. I’m heading over to read your post.

  3. Dolly@Soulstops says

    October 20, 2015 at 8:56 pm

    Katie,

    You brought back memories of our daughter’s birth and all that happened physically, emotionally and spiritually afterwards and…what a great observation about how rest can be a stepping stone to another adventure with God…blessings to you as you write 🙂

    • Katie says

      October 21, 2015 at 11:29 pm

      Thank you Dolly. The observation was not original with me, but I am thankful I heard it, because I think it is true. It changes your perspective when you imagine that you are getting ready for the next thing.

  4. Anita Ojeda says

    October 20, 2015 at 9:32 pm

    I’ve never thought of it this way before, Katie. But I think you’re right–rest is not a reward for a job well-done, it’s God’s gift of time to prepare us for the next thing (which will probably be harder than we imagined). If we spend those quiet, in-between times growing closer to Him, we’ll be prepared.

    • Katie says

      October 21, 2015 at 11:29 pm

      Hi Anita- How is your series going? The end is in sight! 🙂

  5. Jolene Underwood (@Faith_Eyes) says

    October 21, 2015 at 8:35 am

    Oh Katie, with you here. “Mind blown!” I’ve considered this before, yet there’s something about hearing it depicted with Adam & Eve that sinks the idea in deeper. Cheering you on in your times of rest and times of whatever-God-has-in-store.

    • Katie says

      October 21, 2015 at 11:30 pm

      Hi Friend! Thanks for commenting and for your encouragement.

  6. Wendy says

    October 30, 2015 at 4:24 pm

    What a lovely, well-crafted except amd post. Thank you for sharing.

    • Katie says

      November 1, 2015 at 11:17 pm

      Thank you for the encouragement friend!

Primary Sidebar

katie reid headshot

MEET KATIE

Hi, I'm Katie (a Modern Martha, wife, and mom to five). I'm so glad you're here! Let's enjoy some cut-to-the-chase conversation over hot or iced tea, as we find grace in the unraveling of life (together). Let's exchange try-hard striving for hope-filled freedom as we settle into our position as a doer and a daughter—created by a Loving Father.

Read More

Subscribe for regular updates & receive a free video series.

Made Like Martha

Made Like Martha
Buy Now

Echoes of My Heart

Echoes of My Heart CD
Buy Now

Favorites for You

25 affiliate resources for communicator creatives and busy women

This site uses affiliate links.
Click here to read the full disclosure.

Footer

Search This Site

Recent Posts

  • God, What Do I Do? Bible Study Introduction with Katie & Lee
  • Looking Back, Looking Ahead with Katie and Lee
  • Benefits of Chiropractic Care with Dr. Lianne Coombe, B.A., D.C
  • Seven Ways to Get Healthy with Kelly Cullen, ND

Stay Connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2025 Katie M. Reid · Design by The Design Diva · Development by MRM

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT