It is natural to long for acceptance and kindness, especially from someone whose favor would mean so much in a relationship. When a mother’s heart seems closed, it brings pain, and I understand why you are asking Jesus to intervene. The longing for her to welcome you and for a son to choose happiness is a deep cry.
Yet we must always bring those longings into the light of how God actually works. You are right to turn to Jesus, because only He changes hearts from the inside. The law, any human rule or expectation, can never manufacture love or trust. The law demands and judges, but it has no power to soften a heart. You might think, “If only she would see that I keep the rules, that I am good enough, she would accept me.” But human approval does not work that way. If righteousness could be gained by our efforts, then Christ would not have needed to die. The cold requirement of conditions, the need to prove ourselves, that is the bondage of relating by law. And yet, when you place your faith in Christ, you are set free from that. You are no longer trying to earn love; you are invited into a new kind of relationship where the Spirit writes God’s desires on your heart.
In this, your own part is to cling to Jesus, not to the approval of anyone else. When you abide in Him, His life begins to flow through you. You discover that the goal is not to meet an impossible standard to win a mother’s acceptance, but to bear fruit of love, patience, and kindness even when it is not returned. The beautiful story of Ruth comes to mind. Ruth did not demand that Naomi treat her gently at the start. Naomi was bitter and thought God was against her. Yet Ruth remained loyal, and a great bond of affection grew between them. Naomi eventually became the one who actively sought rest and blessing for Ruth. That transformation started not by Ruth forcing a change, but by her steadfast kindness. Notice how Naomi asked her, “Where have you been gleaning?” and blessed the man who noticed her. That same man, Boaz, told Ruth not to go home empty to her mother-in-law. God wove provision and restored relationships through quiet faithfulness.
So pray, yes, for the lady’s heart to become kind. Ask the Lord to melt any hardness and to build genuine trust. But even more, pray for your own heart, that you would delight in God’s ways more than you long for a particular outcome. The happiness of a son, and your own happiness, is found not in bypassing God’s design but in surrendering to it. True rest comes only through Christ. He does not give a license to sin, but He gives freedom from the crushing weight of trying to control others. If this son is to choose happiness, it must be happiness grounded in the will of God, not merely in romantic feeling or external approval.
Let your trust be in the Lord, who redeems difficult situations and can bring about a bond between a mother and a daughter-in-law that reflects His goodness. In His time, He may well open the door and turn a heart. Until then, walk in love, and let your own life be a tree planted by the water, bearing fruit in season, regardless of the immediate response.