Spiritual Surrender as Preparation for Childbirth

Maire Richards
Mar 12
7 min read

The posture of open hands is a beautiful expression of prayer and serves as a powerful tool during labor. Spiritually, it symbolizes releasing control and inviting God's guidance and support. In the context of labor, it not only becomes a prayerful gesture but also acts as a physical cue to relax through contractions and surrender to the natural process of childbirth.

During my third pregnancy, I focused more on spiritual preparation than I did with my previous ones. This was partly because the labor with my second child was not as peaceful as I had hoped, and I realized I needed to dedicate more time to prayer and meditation. Additionally, it's simply the right thing to do! We consist of body, mind, and spirit, and if one suffers, the others are impacted. I've seen mothers who are physically well-prepared for labor but struggle spiritually, unable to surrender or pray due to panic. This often results in longer, more painful labors and a less satisfying birth experience. When I made my "labor playlist" for my third, I started with the song "New Wine," from Hillsong. Here are some of the lyrics:

In the crushing

In the pressing

You are making

New wine

In the soil, I

Now surrender

You are breaking

New ground

So I yield to You and to Your careful hand

When I trust You I don't need to understand

Make me Your vessel

Make me an offering

Make me whatever You want me to be

I came here with nothing

But all You have given me

Jesus, bring new wine out of me

How fitting these words are in relation to childbirth, and what powerful imagery. The nine months of pregnancy can provide many opportunities for transformation as one prepares to become a mother again or for the first time. Much like the process of wine-making. And labor is that final refinement.

How is labor spoken of in Scripture? 
From John 16:21-22: "When a woman is in labor, she has pain [lupe], because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish [thilipsis] because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world."
	lupe=toil
	thilipsis=pressure

Maybe you have heard of people on social media talk about their "painless" childbirth, promoting their birth class or whatever it may be. As there is a part of me that rolls my eyes at the concept, I do think I know where they are coming from. Labor is certainly very HARD work (toil) and there is immense pressure. Those things can cause pain or be perceived as pain, but I do think that toil and pressure are more fitting words. Pain is a word that is used for when something is broken or hurt, and in the context of labor, doesn't really fit. This is part of the mental/spiritual preparation that I focus on with clients. When a woman in labor walks into the hospital and is in pain, it makes sense that her brain would go straight to "Oh no, something is wrong!" when that simply isn't the case. In fact, something is very RIGHT and something beautiful is happening. This is where the surrender comes back into play. Surrendering to the toil, to the pressure, to the process of childbirth, is going to make for a peaceful and calm birth experience.

In comes the Surrender Novena. I recommend this prayer for all of my clients during pregnancy. It is a beautiful and tangible way to prepare spiritually for childbirth. I will put it here below, but here is a link to the website that talks about the history of the prayer. Simply follow the nine days of prayer, and then realize that you want to repeat it immediately.

Much love,

Maire

The Surrender Novena

Day 1

Jesus to the soul: Why do you confuse yourselves by worrying? Leave the care of your affairs to Me and everything will be peaceful. I say to you in truth that every act of true, blind, complete surrender to Me produces the effect that you desire and resolves all difficult situations.