We just returned from our Sabbath’s Rest retreat, and while I didn’t get much rest in the physical sense—because I was hosting—it was still deeply restorative for my soul. Time spent with people I love, in intentional presence, eating good and healing food gave me space to reflect on some of the deeper things stirring in my heart.
One of the questions I’ve been holding is this:
Why are midwives always so overworked, stretched thin, and close to burnout?
The answer isn’t simple, but as I’ve been pondering it, something from a podcast I’ve been listening to came into sharper focus.
I’ve been journeying through the BEMA Podcast with Marty Solomon, and it has offered a beautiful reframing of Scripture—especially Genesis. One of the themes Marty explores is the contrast between Kingdom and Empire—two ideologies that have run parallel from the beginning of time.
Empire is built on power, fear, and control. It is about building structures that serve the self. Empire says: take more, do more, be more, outpace the others.
Kingdom, on the other hand, is rooted in shalom—wholeness, peace, hospitality, sacrificial love, relationship, generosity, and presence. Kingdom says: lay down your power, lift up others, choose love, choose rest.
As I listened, I began to apply this framework to midwifery.
Could it be that much of our burnout stems from the fact that we’ve been caught—perhaps unknowingly—in the pattern of empire-building? There is an undercurrent in our work that whispers, you must be the best, take more clients, prove your worth, stay ahead, never stop. Sometimes we wear our exhaustion as a badge of honor, all the while quietly resenting the toll it’s taking.
There are spirits that linger around midwifery—both beautiful and broken. One of the most dangerous is comparison, which breeds competition. And competition in the heart of a midwife leads us out of community and into isolation. We start trying to build something for ourselves rather than co-laboring in a kingdom where there is always enough.
But what if we laid it down?
What if we stopped trying to build our own empire and instead stepped into the rhythm of building Kingdom—where we are sustained, not drained? Where rest is not indulgent, but essential? Where relationship matters more than reputation, and presence is valued above performance?
As I sat with these questions, I was reminded of the verse in Exodus 1:21:
"Because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own."
That verse has always intrigued me. If midwifery was meant to be so all-consuming often at the cost us our marriages, our children, and our homes, why would God reward the midwives with families?
The truth is, I’ve seen it too many times. Midwives who are separated or divorced. Children who feel overlooked. Spouses who feel like strangers in the wake of birth work. Midwives who themselves are unhealthy mind body and spirit, pouring from a parched and broken vessel. And my heart breaks—because that’s not the fruit of the Kingdom.
God didn’t give us families to sacrifice them on the altar of this calling. He didn’t call us to midwifery so that we would lose ourselves in it. He is the God of both/and. He is able to make a way for us to serve women and serve our homes. He is the God of peace, not chaos.
So what does it look like to be a Kingdom midwife?
Maybe it looks like:
Saying no to one more client so you can say yes to Sabbath rest.
Celebrating another midwife’s practice instead of competing with it.
True community midwifery where we work WITH one another instead of against.
Practicing generosity with your time, presence, and wisdom.
Choosing community over comparison.
Asking, “Is this sustainable?” before saying yes.
Embracing that your worth is not in how many births you do, but in who you are.
Honoring Sabbath.
I’m not saying this is easy. But I am saying—it’s possible. The first step might just be to pause, breathe, and remember: we are not building empires. We are building the Kingdom.
If you would like to learn more about Kingdom vs. Empire go to.
BEMA Podcast Season 1, Episode 18 “A Tale of Two Kingdoms” and again in Season 3, Episode 90 “ A Gospel of Two Kingdoms”.
With you in this holy work,.
—Amy