Tag Archives: Mother’s Day

Mothers and Mothers-in-Law

06 Friday May 2022

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There seems to be light-hearted remarks about mothers-in-law among some, but my experience has not been able to relate with that. No doubt, some mothers fit negative stereotypes, and then when they become mothers-in-law….

I am also sure many mothers have heard these remarks and might even have gone an extra mile to make sure they are not guilty of being anything like the punching-bag fodder. When you think of your mother-in-law, what comes to mind? Whatever comes to mind, before her mother-in-law status, she was the only mother to your spouse.

As I was thinking about a bulletin article for this Mother’s Day, I looked at Mark 1:29-31, and Jesus’ healing Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever. The emphasis in these 3 verses is on what Jesus did, not on Peter’s mother-in-law, except to say that she was sick with a fever and after being healed, she got up and served them. There is nothing in this reading about any time-separation between her being healed and when she had begun to serve, only that she served them. Was she compelled? Not hardly! This was who she was, so let us think about the women in our families, about who they are.

As I was thinking about this, I thought I would jot down some things that come to my mind when I think of a mother. First, in the Lord’s eyes, He brought her forth from man, thus equal to him in all respects. Her equality was not a matter of doing what he did but serving effectively in the role the Almighty gave her, as he served effectively in the role the Almighty gave him.

Second, in the Lord’s eyes, she is the primary mover of the world. Think about it. While the husband/father leads the family, she cares for the children, and she raises them to be what they should in an adult society. Sadly, many females reject this role because they have bought the lies of Satan, thinking they can have a career and play a significant role in the lives of their children after they pick them up from the baby-sitter. Third, there is no tenderness like there is in a mother. Just ask the husband. Better, yet, as I reflect on my own upbringing, when I got in trouble, it was to mom I went. I knew she could soften the blow-back I would get from dad, and when our girls were at home, this is exactly the role my wife played as well. She did this because she was better at being a buffer than I and she effectively took care of the situation with the right amount of discipline.

Fourth, little boys are taught how to respect women when they learn it from their mother. They learn it from the father, of course, but the learning that comes from a mother is of a different quality. Fifth, who is better at dealing with the issues a little girl experiences than a mother who was once there. I laugh at myself when I think of this now, but I remember saying to our daughters several times, this is what you need to do, so just do it. I was not much on empathy, just buckle down and get it done (learned this from my dad). Don’t ask questions.

Perhaps that works best for boys, maybe some girls, but in my many years, not most girls.

Sixth, in a family with a mother and father, there is balance. Whatever strengths one has, the other enhances it. Whatever failings one has, the other makes up the difference. This is a family after God’s pattern. We don’t want to minimize the contributions of our fathers, but on this Mother’s Day, we want to accentuate a mover and shaker in our family and in this world. There is nothing like a mother (to me). RT

Mother’s Day!

13 Sunday May 2018

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Is it not interesting that in Luke 1, here on this Mother’s Day occasion, the announcement of heaven was given on two separate occasions to women who have yet to know the experiences of pregnancy and motherhood? That is, however, what we read in this chapter of Luke.

Elisabeth, an older woman who looked on her life as one not blessed by God because she had no child (or no children) to raise and nurture. She may not have considered her and her husband (Zacharias) as cursed, but it is more than likely she saw herself and them as not blessed (cf. Deut. 7:14: You shall be blessed above all peoples. There shall not be male or female barren among you or among your livestock. ESV). She was very much on the Lord’s mind (as was her husband) and she was very much in the Lord’s good graces. It goes to show (teach) that reality as one thinks of it in her life may not be reality at all.

Mary, a young woman, the age of which no one knows (perhaps a middle to late teenager). She was young enough that she was not married, but she was old enough to be betrothed (all but officially married) to the man Joseph. The same angel who came to Elisabeth’s husband six months earlier, comes now to Mary. Mary was perplexed and confused about the situation, but she was wise enough to accept what she did not understand because of the source of the information, that source being the Almighty.

These two women had a story to tell, a story to tell that turned the world upside-down!

            Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to draw up a narrative concerning those matters which have been fulfilled among us (Luke 1:1, ASV), Many people in the world have stories to tell about their own experiences relative to God, Christianity, the Holy Spirit, salvation, the church and Jesus. During the days of Luke many were telling the story of Jesus; those telling that story may not have been blatantly wrong or mistaken, but perhaps incomplete. On the other hand, some Bible expositors put forth the perspective those Luke had in view were Matthew and Mark, so Luke set out to complete this message of the Lord toward a particular audience of people. Unfortunately, in our day, many who speak about the Lord, Holy Spirit, salvation, etc., are blatantly wrong or mistaken. The only way to determine accuracy in matters pertaining to God is to go to His revealed Word, as the Bereans did (Acts 17:11). even as they delivered them unto us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word (Luke 1:2), The Word of God must be preached to people, and preaching the Message of God to people means the Word of God must be taught to people who do not know. Unlike in the days of the first century, we are a most fortunate people because we have a Bible in our house (likely more than one), a Bible on our phone (perhaps more than one translation), but because it is so common, people don’t respect it like they should. “I can read the Bible any time I want” saying this as they lightly set it aside for another day. What a shame! Those in Luke’s day had a zeal for God to teach it with compassion and passion; it cost them much, but they taught it just the same. it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus (Luke 1:3);  who Theophilus was is not known, but the writing document put together by Luke was not only to teach and reaffirm to him the truthfulness of what he wrote, but also for us. Peter said of those things written, man now has all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3) and Jude says that those things revealed must be defended, that is contended for when others speak against it (Jude 3; cf. Phil. 1:27). that thou mightest know the certainty concerning the things wherein thou wast instructed (Luke 1:4). The Gospel message is a message of hope, but the message of hope is surrounded in this world by much darkness. While the gospel message will never be defeated, those to who the Gospel message is give can be defeated, and their defeat will be the result of 1) neglect or 2) reject.

We may not have a story to turn the world upside-down like Elisabeth and Mary, but we do have a story to tell. That story is the life of Christ in the life of us each. As you thank your mother for being who she is, be sure to thank the Lord because of who He is and what He did for each of us. That is the story we can tell others and should tell from the mountaintops. RT

MOTHER’S DAY

12 Thursday May 2016

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Our Mother’s Day sermon came from 1 Samuel, chapters 1 and 2 – the story of Hannah, a great woman of faith. I gleaned from her story some particular points that will certainly benefit us all if we consider them and make some applications.

Hannah was a woman who loved the Lord. What love she had toward the Lord may not have been as great as the love she did come to have, but there is no reason to think that prior to her marriage to Elkanah she did not love the Lord with some great devotion. This emotional quality and behavioral response Hannah exhibited points to two strong reminders in human relations. First, a woman wants to be loved. She wants to be loved by the Lord and she wants to be loved by her family. If she was raised with no love in the home, that no-love experience carries into adulthood and manifests itself in insecurity, anger, distrust, etc. It takes the love of a husband to offset those burdens she carries, but he himself needs to understand what love is and does. Second, a woman wants to give love also. In the case of Hannah, she gave herself to her husband, she loved him. But the love she had for her husband, however great it was, was a love that is not necessarily the same as the love a mother has toward her child. Hannah wanted to have children and share with them her love, as she did with her husband.

Circumstances in life have a great way of drawing one closer to the Lord than what one previously thought was possible. Sometimes we experience travails in life that are not the result of our own doings; sometimes we experience affliction in life that is very much the reason because of our own failings. In both cases, knowing what to do when the travail/affliction comes is crucial to own life progresses from that point.

Hannah was childless and, as far as the Record is concerned, she did not know why. She did know, however, to whom she could turn for a solution to her present problem. Such an important point that many overlook it. It is not overlooked because one is callous, but it is overlooked because it is but a “small” point in the story. That’s just it! It is not small, but very important.

In a different context, the Lord encouraged and gave exhortation to the people of Israel after they returned from Babylonian captivity. Note what the Lord said, “For who hath despised the day of small things?” (Zechariah 4:10, KJV). I really like the way that reads, but we must note the passage has specific application to the rebuilding of the Temple. At that time, some made comparison with the Temple Solomon built (destroyed by Babylon) and then compared it with the Temple the people of Zechariah’s day built; the people wept (Haggai 2:1-5). Though small in comparison, it was quite important.

Hannah’s prayer, though perhaps perceived as a small part of the story, is quite important to the whole of the story.

To the Lord she went in prayer; she poured out her heart and the High Priest Eli took note of Hannah praying and, after an initial correction by her to him, encouraged her in her prayer. Hannah found comfort in the Lord (cf. 1 Samuel 30:6) and she returned home to tend to the matters of ordinary life. What a great lesson here also. Life goes on, and we need to address those ordinary matters of life, even if they are extraordinary. Life does not stop because of my or your heartache, and neither did it stop for her. Hannah appealed to God and to the Lord she turned over her burden (cf. 1 Peter 5:6-7).

The Lord heard Hannah’s prayer and, more than that, He answered her prayer. How easy it would have been with all the joy a loving mother can possibly experience to change her mind after having received God’s gift of a child. “The Lord will understand,” someone might say. Yes, He would understand, but that is not the same as saying that He would be pleased with the change of mind after a previous vow (1 Samuel 1:9-11). This is what makes Hannah stand out; she did not change her mind.

About three years later, after all the nurturing, nursing and bonding that took place – to Shiloh (where the Tabernacle was located) she and her family went. Having arrived, she kept her vow. To Eli she handed her child over, dedicating him to the Lord’s service. Imagine the heartache and tears shed over that, and the many days following!

We don’t read anymore of Hannah, but we read of the greatness of her son, God’s prophet, Samuel. The story of Hannah is but a small (short) story, but the legacy of her virtue is her mark in human history. RT