Praise God for Mother’s
I tell you when I call home I so look forward to the voice of my mother.
I love my dad, but I do love to talk and spend time with my mother.
Why is this so? I know that with certainty the love of a mother for a child far surpasses what is common in our world and society.
I know that when I was growing up if things weren’t going right or I had to ask or tell my dad something that would be difficult—I often found myself talking to my mom hoping she would tell my dad or at least give me her sage advice on how best to approach the topic with dad.
I grew up not as a reformed Christian, but even their I saw something very close to what I would come to know as the “Agape” all encompassing love of Jesus Christ. The Christ that loved me when I was an outcast sinner unclean—was the same human mother kind of love that was exhibited to me growing up.
I watched my dad say “That’s it no more—over my brother getting arrested for the umpteenth time” and looked into my mother’s eyes and knew there would never be a no more in her heart for him or for any of us.
My mom taught me as soon as I could talk to kneel by her bed and say my prayers—rote though they were—every night.
I know that most people can relate to this as I have rarely met anyone who did not have the same or similar tales of their mothers. We will examine some scripture today as we wish all of our women a very Happy Mother’s Day.
Let’s Start at the beginning and examine some requirements towards Mothers.
Exodus 20:12 (KJV)
Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
You do realize we are commanded to honor our fathers and mothers? We will be concentrating on the mother during our sermon today. This is a command with a promise the promise received is long life which is promised of God.
Deut. 5:16 (KJV)
Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
We will see this promised several times, two witnesses confirm a matter. On this matter of honoring your mother we have several.
Why would anyone find it difficult to love the mother that nurtured you?
That loved you while you were still in her womb.
That was able to kiss away the most painful of pains.
That the mere loving look of brought relief of pain and its aches for the worst of colds and flu.
That would appease their own necessities for your own.
Mother’s are indeed a special creation of God, which reminds me of something I saw in an illustration a couple of years ago:
One of my favorite columns by Erma Bombeck tells of God in the act of creating mothers. She says that on the day God created mothers He had already worked long overtime. And an angel said to Him, "Lord, you sure are spending a lot of time on this one."
The Lord turned & said, "Have you read the specs on this model? She is supposed to be completely washable, but not plastic. She is to have 180 moving parts, all of them replaceable. She is to have a kiss that will heal everything from a broken leg to a broken heart. She is to have a lap that will disappear whenever she stands up. She is to be able to function on black coffee & leftovers. And she is supposed to have six pairs of hands."
"Six pairs of hands," said the angel, "that’s impossible." "It’s not the six pairs of hands that bother me." said the Lord, "It’s the three pairs of eyes. She is supposed to have one pair that sees through closed doors so that whenever she says, `What are you kids doing in there?’ she already knows what they’re doing in there."
"She has another pair in the back of her head to see all the things she is not supposed to see but must see. And then she has one pair right in front that can look at a child that just goofed & communicate love & understanding without saying a word."
"That’s too much." said the angel, "You can’t put that much in one model. Why don’t you rest for a while & resume your creating tomorrow?"
"No, I can’t," said the Lord. "I’m close to creating someone very much like myself. I’ve already come up with a model who can heal herself when she is sick - who can feed a family of six with one pound of hamburger - & who can persuade a nine year old to take a shower."
Then the angel looked at the model of motherhood a little more closely & said, "She’s too soft." "Oh, but she is tough," said the Lord. "You’d be surprised at how much this mother can do."
"Can she think?" asked the angel. "Not only can she think," said the Lord, "but she can reason & compromise & persuade."
Then the angel reached over & touched her cheek. "This one has a leak," he said. "I told you that you couldn’t put that much in one model." "That’s not a leak," said the Lord. "That’s a tear."
"What’s a tear for?" asked the angel. "Well it’s for joy, for sadness, for sorrow, for disappointment, for pride." "You’re a genius," said the angel. And the Lord said, "Oh, but I didn’t put it there."
Well, I truly do feel and pray that you do too that when God created women he created a very special type of individual. I am so very glad He did, as I am sure all of us who are married to these special gifts from God feel they are deserving of our very best—Amen.
The Blessings of a Mother
What do mothers bless us with?
They bless us with the following:
· Dedication (I Sam 1:11),
And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.
· Protection (Ex. 2:3),
And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.
· Training (II Tim. 1:5),
When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
· Prayers (Genesis 21:16-19),
And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept. [17] And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is. [18] Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation. [19] And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
· Love (I Kings 3:26),
Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.
· Triumph (Matthew 15:25-28)
Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. [26] But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs. [27] And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. [28] Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
These are indeed great tributes to the greatness of the gift of motherhood to which you ladies have been called. I will be giving a number of illustrations I have collected over the years and feel are so very appropriate to the occasion.
A Small Handprint On The Wall
One day as I was picking
the toys up off the floor,
I noticed a small hand print
on the wall beside the door.
I knew that it was something
that I’d seen most every day,
but this time when I saw it there,
I wanted it to stay.
Then tears welled up inside my eyes,
I knew it wouldn’t last,
for every mother knows
her children grow up way too fast.
Just then I put my chores aside
and held my children tight.
I sang to them sweet lullabies
and rocked into the night.
Sometimes we take for granted,
all those things that seem so small.
Like one of God’s great treasures....
A small hand print on the wall.
Source unknown
I Loved You Enough
“You don’t love me!” How many times have your kids laid that one on you? Someday when my children are old enough to understand the logic motivation a mother, I’ll tell them:
· I loved you enough to bug you about where you were going and what time you would get home.
· I loved you enough to let you discover your friend was a creep.
· I loved you enough to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your bedroom, a job that would have taken me 15 minutes.
· I loved you enough to ignore what every other mother did or said.
· I loved you enough to let you stumble, fall, hurt and fail.
· I loved you enough to accept you for what you are, not what I wanted you to be.
· Most of all, I loved you enough to say no when you hated me for it.
Some mothers don’t know when their job is finished. They figure the longer the kids hang around, the better parents they are.
I see children as kites. You spend a lifetime trying to get them off the ground. You run with them until you’re both breathless...they crash...you add a longer tail. You patch and comfort, adjust and teach—and assure them that someday they will fly.
Finally they are airborne, but they need more string, and you keep letting it out. With each twist of the ball of twine, the kite becomes more distant. You know it won’t be long before that beautiful creature will snap the lifeline that bound you together and soar—free and alone. Only then do you know you did your job.
Erma Bombeck, from “Forever, Erma,” quoted in Reader’s Digest, March 1997, p. 148
Godly Mothers
Many godly men of the past have been richly blessed by what they learned from their mothers. Consider the biblical characters Moses, Samuel, and Timothy. The maternal influence experienced by these spiritual leaders bore rich fruit in their lives. Think too of men like Augustine, John Newton, and the zealous Wesley brothers. Their names would probably never have lighted the pages of history if it hadn’t been for the godly women who raised them in homes where the law of love and a Christian witness were their daily guide and inspiration.
Susannah Wesley, for example, spent one hour each day praying for her 17 children. In addition, she took each child aside for a full hour every week to discuss spiritual matters. No wonder two of her sons, Charles and John, were used of God to bring blessing to all of England and much of America. Here are a few rules she followed in training her children:
(1) Subdue self-will in a child and thus work together with God to save his soul.
(2) Teach him to pray as soon as he can speak.
(3) Give him nothing he cries for and only what is good for him if he asks for it politely.
(4) To prevent lying, punish no fault which is freely confessed, but never allow a rebellious, sinful act to go unnoticed
(5) Commend and reward good behavior.
(6) Strictly observe all promises you have made to your child.”
Let us honor our godly mothers today, not only with words of praise, but with lives that reflect the impact of their holy influence! - H.G.B.
Our Daily Bread, May 8
Mother’s Love
A Mother’s love is something that no one can explain,
It is made of deep devotion and of sacrifice and pain,
It is endless and unselfish and enduring come what may
For nothing can destroy it or take that love away...
It is patient and forgiving when all others are forsaking,
And it never fails or falters even though the heart is breaking...
It believes beyond believing when the world around condemns,
And it glows with all the beauty of the rarest, brightest gems...
It is far beyond defining, it defies all explanation,
and it still remains a secret like the mysteries of creation...
A many-splendored miracle man cannot understand
And another wondrous evidence of God’s tender guiding hand.
Source unknown
If today you desire to come to a true understanding of the love that we are all called to then I ask you to consider your life. Do you see that you have hurt others and yourself?
Jesus loves you anyway. Jesus desires for you to come to HIM and confess your sinfulness. Jesus stands at your hearts door and knocks—only you can let HIM in. If this is the wish of your heart today then come forward. We would love to pray with you to ask Jesus into your heart and life today. You can leave a new creation capable of the love of Christ. I pray that you will come today.
Remember, Jesus Loves You and so do we. We would love to pray for you or anyone in your family, please let us know. Mother’s we will lift you up for the great job you do in our lives and in your calling by God. Continue to strive for the light that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Closing Prayer.
