Mother's Day, 2017

There are lots of mothers in the Bible, some good and some not. For the "not good" you can think of folks like Jezebel or Lot's wife. But there were some really good ones.

Take, for instance, Hannah. She prayed that God would give her a son and, in so doing, vowed to give him back to God (1 Sam 1:10-11). That's a devoted mother. She highly valued children and wept for not having one, but more highly valued her God and believed that a child is a gift from God. She did quite literally what all good mothers must do in spirit as well; she gave her child to God.

How about the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8-16)? She was a widow. She had a son. It was a drought. They were not going to make it. When Elijah asked her to give him some food, she answered, "I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die." (1 Kings 17:12) Elijah promised God would take care of them and she ... "went and did what Elijah said." (1 Kings 17:15) And God provided. She did what every good mother must do; she trusted God to provide.

Then there was the Canaanite mother in Jesus's day (Matt 15:22-28). She had a demon-possessed daughter. She begged Jesus for help. Jesus rebuffed her. "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (Matt 15:24) When she continued to ask, He said, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." (Matt 15:26) Unlike most mothers you may know, she didn't file a lawsuit for defamation or complain to the media about His unwarranted unkind representation of her heritage. She replied, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." (Matt 15:27) "Yes, Lord." That's the proper response. That's how every mother must respond in all things, but especially in the care of their children.

There are lots of good mothers in Scripture. I tried to pick a few you might not think of first off the bat. These mothers demonstrated what all good mothers ought to be doing. Your children are on loan; remember Who gave them to you. You are the one He chose to care for them; remember Who ultimately provides for them. Diligently seek the best for your children, even when it hurts.

Scripture says,

"Honor your father and mother" (this is the first commandment with a promise), "that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land." (Eph 6:2-3)

It's Mother's Day, and it's a great opportunity to honor your mother. It's Mother's Day and I have to point out that these mothers illustrate what has been my experience with my mother. When I was 3 and she was riding in the ambulance with me without knowing if I would survive, she told the ambulance attendant who asked how she could be so calm that I belonged to the Lord and He would do what was best. When the family struggled in my youth to make ends meet, she relied on God to provide, whether it was through my father or not. When I was leaving home for sinful reasons at 18 and she wept, she answered, "Yes, Lord", trusting Him to do what was best even when He was allowing sorrow and difficulties.

No mother is perfect. And we are commanded to "honor your father and mother" without regard to whether or not they are "worthy of honor". (I put that in quotes because, apparently, God regards all fathers and mothers worthy of being honored.) As for me, it's easy to honor my mother. I hope to continue to do so for the rest of my life. Thank you, Lord, for the mother You gave me.