When asked, “what is your favorite part of being a mom?” A woman may be tempted to say any number of things. The quiet moments when rocking a baby to sleep, creating life, birthdays, graduations, Christmas. Seeing your child reach a goal that they have been working on for a long time. There are moments that you are so proud that the buttons on your blouse could pop from your heart being so full. All of these are magnificent parts of being a mother. When I’m asked what my favorite part of being a mom is, I have to say, “the moment they first screamed in my face.”
When a baby is first born, they are usually screaming. It could be the smack on the behind from the doctor or the shock of being born. For whatever reason, the baby is yelling and crying, showing off their lungs and letting their presence known. The doctor lays the screaming baby on your chest, and you smell their breath. The baby hasn’t eaten anything, and its breath is pure. It is the sweetest smell in the world, one like no other. It truly is the breath of God.
God’s breath is talked about in the Bible as a life-giving agent when Adam was made. The word “breathed” in Genesis 2:7 has an interesting meaning in the original Hebrew text.
Gen. 2:7 “And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.”
I want to focus on the word “breathed.” The definition of breathing is the air coming out of or into the body of a living
being. The Hebrew term translated as “breath” is “neshamah.” It is often used regarding God’s breath. Neshamah identifies God as the source of life (Gen. 2:7; Job 27:3; 33:4; Dan. 5:23). God is the sovereign of life. He gave breath to humans initially in creation (Gen. 2:7).
There are many things in this world the smell good, steaks cooked on a grill, fresh flowers cut from the yard, the scent of a pine tree in your home at Christmas, and there are many rewarding times in motherhood. But when asked my favorite part, I have to say that first smell of their breath. It is the closest I will ever be to the life-giving breath of God.
Happy Mother’s Day, ladies!
