Praying with Mary through May: Our Inspiration

Throughout the month of May, we will be sharing posts focused on journeying alongside the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Share your experiences in the comments or on social media using #praywithmary.

In today's society, it's easy to compare. Every person’s picture perfect life is blasted on social media. It's hard to imagine the perfect woman ever having a bad day. People don't post the diaper blowout or threenager meltdown. They post surprise flowers, not struggles in their marriage. It's so easy to compare yourself to other women, other moms.

How do we compare to the perfect woman and mother, Mary? Thankfully because she doesn't have a Facebook account, I've never thought of it that way. I've always looked to Mary as inspiration, the perfect role model. I've prayed for her intercession to help my colicky baby fall asleep. I've prayed for her intercession for guidance in gently disciplining my child. I've prayed for her intercession to accept God's will in my life.

I connected the most to Mary during the struggles and difficult times in my life. When our infant son had open heart surgery, I found hope and strength in saying the rosary.

When we saw our son in recovery for the first time, I immediately thought of Mary’s eyes looking at Jesus. Our son was in pain and I couldn’t do anything to help him. I felt strength in knowing that Mary also grieved and suffered and cried. I felt so much closer to her during that dark, painful time. Her answer to Gabriel inspired me to keep going and continue to put my faith and hope in her son, Jesus.

“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” Mary's yes lead to judgement. Mary's yes lead to watching her son die on the cross. Mary's yes lead to our salvation. Big or small, we can look to Mary as a perfect example of how our “yes” can make an impact on the world. What a blessing it is to have such a perfect woman be so much like us. How do you look up to Mary and say “yes” to God’s will?

Melanie Pizzino is a wife, mother of two, and defender of our beautiful, Catholic faith. As a type-A teacher turned stay at home Mom, she loves to keep herself busy, so during this Year of Mercy, she started blogging at https://themercifulmother.wordpress.com/.