The Precious Power of Mothers

What defines a mother? How do we encapsulate the essence of motherhood? Let's ponder some reflections:

“A mother is a person who, seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.” —Tenneva Jordan

“A mom forgives us all our faults, not to mention one or two we don’t even have.” —Robert Brault

“It’s not easy being a mother. If it were, fathers would do it.” —The Golden Girls

“The phrase ’working mother’ is redundant.” —Jane Sellman

“I want my children to have all the things I couldn’t afford. Then, I want to move in with them.” —Phyllis Diller

“If evolution really works, how come mothers have only two hands?” —Milton Berle

“There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it.” —Chinese Proverb

“Mom, I love you, even though I’ll never accept your friend request.” —Unknown

“A mother is your first friend, your best friend, your forever friend.” —Unknown

“When you are looking at your mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know.” —Charley Benetto

“Mother is the heartbeat in the home; and without her, there seems to be no heartthrob.” —Leroy Brownlow

“Mothers are like glue. Even when you can’t see them, they’re still holding the family together.” —Susan Gale

“The influence of a mother in the lives of her children is beyond calculation.” —James E. Faust

“There is no role in life that is more essential than that of motherhood.” —Elder M. Russell Ballard

“Youth fades; love droops; the leaves of friendship fall; A mother’s secret hope outlives them all.” —Oliver Wendell Holmes

“Motherhood is the exquisite inconvenience of being another person’s everything.” —Unknown

“My mother was my role model before I even knew what that word was.” —Lisa Leslie

“A mother understands what a child does not say.” —Jewish proverb

“The world needs our mothers.” —Liya Kebede

“A mother’s hug lasts long after she lets go.” —Unknown

“All that I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” —Abraham Lincoln

“A mother is the one who fills your heart in the first place.” —Amy Tan

“Mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled.” —Emily Dickinson

“A mother’s love is more beautiful than any fresh flower.” —Debasish Mridha

“Mothers hold their children’s hands for a short while, but their hearts forever.” —Unknown

These poignant reflections encapsulate the multifaceted nature of motherhood, reminding us of the immeasurable love, sacrifice, and influence of mothers in our lives.

Title: The Precious Power of Mothers

Introduction: Today, let us delve into the precious power of motherhood, a divine calling bestowed upon women by God Himself. Through the lens of scripture and reflection, we'll explore the profound significance of mothers in fulfilling God's creative plan.

Scriptural Foundation: Our journey begins with Luke 1:38, where Mary wholeheartedly accepts her divine calling to bear Jesus, setting a timeless example for all mothers to follow.

Key Points:

Introduction:

Today, we gather to reflect upon the sacred and divine calling of motherhood. Motherhood, though often challenging, is one of the most rewarding experiences granted to humanity. In the grand tapestry of God’s creation, mothers play a pivotal role in nurturing and shaping lives, both biologically and spiritually. Embracing it leads to untold blessings, to ignore it or reject it brings untold misery for generations.

Scriptural Foundation:

In the book of Luke, we find the story of Mary, a humble woman chosen by God to bear His son, Jesus Christ. Despite initial trepidation, Mary embraced her divine calling with unwavering faith, saying, “I am the Lord’s servant; may it happen to me as you have said.” (Luke 1:38)

Luke 1:38 CSB

38 “See, I am the Lord’s servant,” said Mary. “May it happen to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

1. Motherhood is a Divine Calling:

- God’s plan for motherhood reflects His divine purpose for all creation, centered on nurturing life and bringing glory to Him.

- Just as Mary was chosen to bear Jesus, every mother is entrusted with the sacred task of nurturing and guiding her children.

2. Mothers fulfill God’s purpose by Nurturing Life:

Genesis 3:20 HCSB

20 Adam named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all the living.

- Motherhood is characterized by unquestioned love, persevering patience, and unqualified acceptance.

3. The Privileged Spiritual Influence of Mothers:

- Mothers have a unique spiritual influence on their children, shaping their faith and character.

Eve began the golden chain of life.

Mary, brought forth the Savior.

All mothers are privileged to introduce their children to the Savior.

- Like Mary, mothers are called to raise their children in the knowledge and love of God, instilling values that endure beyond a lifetime.

First of all, we see the importance of realizing that having a child is a divine calling from God.

Luke 1:28–35 CSB

28 And the angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. 30 Then the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.” 34 Mary asked the angel, “How can this be, since I have not had sexual relations with a man?” 35 The angel replied to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

Luke 1:38 CSB

38 “See, I am the Lord’s servant,” said Mary. “May it happen to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Unquestioned Love, Persevering Patience, Unqualified Acceptance, Priorities

Looking for and celebrating the good. Following your children’s example of optimism and leaving behind the many faces of negativity. Having an attitude of gratitude. Getting rid of excuses for why you can’t be great and live life fully. Using optimism to gain a clearer perspective and shape your reality: “Today’s going to be a great day!”  What’s an example of when you found something to laugh about in the midst of a hard situation, a method you use to stay positive, or a time when you felt gratitude?

1. MOTHERHOOD IS A DIVINE CALLING.

God could have simply sent Jesus as an adult. He existed before eternity past. There is something blessed about being a mother and experience a mother practically.

God planned Motherhood! It is a blessing, not a curse.

Motherhood isn't just a role foisted upon women by some cruel trick of society or culture, but a divine calling ordained by God Himself. Like Mary, every mother is entrusted with the sacred task of nurturing and guiding life.

Mothers Fulfill God’s Creative Plan:

Motherhood brings challenges. Each child, each home, each family has uniqueness to be navigated, but building a family has rewards that outweigh and outlast those.

God’s grand plan for motherhood is the same plan that he has for everything he has created. He created all things for his glory. So to put it bluntly, motherhood is about nurturing life. God has created and equipped women to nurture the life he creates—both biological and spiritual.

It’s a radical commitment to discipleship and being responsible for creating a spiritual realm where discipleship grows.

Having children is a divine calling from God, and every child is valuable because they are created in His image. Like Mary, mothers are called to embrace their role, dedicating their children to God and nurturing them in the faith.  But we must also realize that parenting often leads to pain and conflict. Even when we’re struggling with heartache, we’re reminded that the rewards of Christian motherhood are often delayed.

Will we persevere and raise our children to praise the Lord?

How does the world see motherhood today?

How does God

2. MOTHERS FULFILL GOD’S CREATIVE PLAN.

A. BY NURTURING LIFE.

Motherhood is not an easy task but it is rewarding.

Watching the many moms in our church, opened my eyes to what it means to live a life on purpose without recognition for a job well done.

Everyone knows there is no $100 bill waiting for you in your child’s dirty diaper. No one says, thank you, for dragging yourself out of bed, on the 184th night in a row, to feed your baby. And there is no medal of honor being presented for rescuing your child from a speeding car when he or she decides to run into the street to retrieve their ball.

The rewards of motherhood are more intrinsic – rewards that touch the depths of the heart.

Motherhood has powers that no other profession can offer. Motherhood is a teacher, a refiner, an influencer…motherhood is a gift.

I’ve heard it said and I believe it bearing a child is a super power.

God’s grand plan for motherhood is the same plan that he has for everything he has created. He created all things for his glory. So to put it bluntly, motherhood is about nurturing life. God has created and equipped women to nurture the life he creates—both biological and spiritual.

By nurturing life, mothers play a crucial role in fulfilling God's creative plan.They prioritize life, embracing the responsibility of shaping future generations. No school, government program, village, or institution will ever replace the necessity of mothers.

Our culture views marriage more as a partnership to advance careers and economic advantages. We see both husband and wife choosing careers according to the best earning power and opportunity for advancement of both, which usually means the family loses the best opportunity for both. Despite all this egalitarian emphasis, Mary Jo Bane of the Wellesley Women’s Research Center expressed a prevailing sentiment: “Everybody is in favor of equal pay, but nobody is in favor of doing the dishes.”13

Motherhood refines our identity: Motherhood has the ability to strip us of the identity we once received from performance, title, or education. We learn that the true meaning of life is relationships. Relationship with God and with others. Motherhood teaches us, it is not what we do but who we become that is truly important.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Deuteronomy 6:5

Motherhood refines our character: Our purpose as Christians is to become like Jesus. The Bible says, “You were … created to be like God, truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:24 GW). Motherhood gives daily opportunity to practice the fruit of the spirit. It is not by our own power that we will achieve holy living. It is by our full dependency on our Heavenly Father and trust that the Holy Spirit will empower us to live out the character of Jesus in our weakness.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)

B. BY PRIORITIZING LIFE!

The world may know you as a mother. But your children need you to be mom!

Women and especially Christian women (and parents) must live with the Power of Intention: Living deliberately, choosing your path, and moving forward with purpose. Remembering that you chose to be a mother. How to “mother on purpose” and become who you are meant to be…as a person.  Do you have a a vision for what you want to help yourself, your children and family do and become? Do you want to share how you helped that vision to unfold?

How many of you can look back and see your mother had opportunities and desires she could have acted upon, but she realized it wasn’t the right thing to do in that season of your life?  Do you have an example of how she carved out time to take care of your needs, or a time when you gave less attention to something some would call very important in order to give time to you, the family? Consider writing that in the cards you will give your your mom’s?

Women in our affluent culture have been given unrealistic ideals and false philosophies. Now all of us are called to be single for a season and some called to be single for life. But once a woman becomes a mother, she has chosen to let her heart live outside her body and step on her feet. Sometimes it’s the tender toes of a child dancing on them. Other times, it’s her feet slowing down other from other opportunities to walk with these children.

Motherhood teaches the true meaning of balance: Motherhood teaches us to live with intention, not perfection. We live on a path deliberated by purpose not busyness, knowing that a life of balance comes with give and take. Balance in a mother’s world is never black and white. Balance is created out of the unexpected and spontaneous moments that we choose to make life giving. The power of motherhood is to live in the moment, not by a to-do list.Motherhood teaches reinvention: Webster’s defines reinvention as: to invent, come upon, find again, to bring something into existence, to remake as in a different form, to revive. Mothers are forced to become lifelong learners as they navigate the seasons of their children’s lives and their own. Infant, toddler, grade school, teenage years, empty-nest, are all seasons of opportunity for reinvention. Motherhood itself is a season. As we care for our children, it is important to remember who God created us to be – revive it, bring it forth, remake it, and share those gifts with our kids!

I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth. Romans 9:17 (NIV)

But

MS. WINFREY:  There you go.  (Applause.)  So here’s the question that comes up over and over and over -- we talked a little bit about it -- this idea of balance.  Is that a false notion for women?  Because can we really -- are we ever going to have it all?  I used to say you can have it all you just can’t have it all at one time.  Is that a false notion?

MRS. OBAMA:  I am always irritated by the “you can have it all” statement.  And I grew irritated with that phrase and that expectation the older I got, as you’re trying to have it all.  And you’re beating yourself up, and feeling less than because you aren’t having it all.  Because it’s a ridiculous aspiration.

MS. WINFREY:  Especially if you’re looking at everybody else’s Facebook page.

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, god, everybody has it all.  Everybody is lying.  They’re lying.  (Laughter and applause.)  You all need to stop lying.  Be real about the fact that -- no one gets everything.  That was one of the first rules you learned as a little kid.  You don’t always get your way.  Come on, people.  You don’t always get what you want all the time.  And that’s true in life.

So what I’ve told many young people is that you can have it all, but oftentimes it’s hard to get it all at the same time.

MS. WINFREY:  Yeah, I believe that.

MRS. OBAMA:  So it’s just a matter of managing expectations.  So for me, for example, you know, when your husband is President of the United States and you have children, something has got to give.  I’ve made compromises in my life and my career,

“You can have it all. Just not all at once.”

― Oprah Winfrey

How many people have suffered and experienced great disappointment with life because they have believed the lies the world and the Devil tells them. Get your career, get the right house, get titles, have vacation homes. And all the while they miss out on how God made them? Made for life, creating life, nurturing life, not gaining things? How many houses long to be a home with the pitter patter of little feet, but that opportunity has been by-passed. How many parents would love to go back and prioritize their family?

Thank the Lord that when you choose to come under the authority of the Word, you get the truth about what matters and can prioritize what will bring the greatest blessing.

You know my grandfather did not have the greatest marriage in his later years. But, I will tell you one thing he would always say, “Grandkids are better than money in the bank.”

When you answer the call to be a mother or a parent, you have chosen to prioritize the development of another human being. While your spouse must come first in your relationship, a child’s needs are so great, you must prioritize that wonderful opportunity.

You ONLY GET one opportunity to raise children.

“You can have it all. Just not all at once.”

― Oprah Winfrey

Well, now we get to the real difficult part that Mary had. After this incident in the temple, we never hear from Joseph again. Now Joseph must have been around because they did have lots of other children, as we shall see in a moment, but we never hear from Joseph. Everything now falls into the lap of Mary.

The Concern.

MOthers cheer success

and cry with distress

The moment a woman becomes a mother, she allows her heart to walk outside her chest.

Well, now we get to the real difficult part that Mary had. After this incident in the temple, we never hear from Joseph again. Now Joseph must have been around because they did have lots of other children, as we shall see in a moment, but we never hear from Joseph. Everything now falls into the lap of Mary.

3. THE LORD PLACES MOTHER’S IN A UNIQUE POSITION OF SPIRITUAL INFLUENCE.

Mother’s Day is quickly approaching. A mother has incredible influence in a child’s life. I’d even go as far to say that she is the most influential. She has a bond like no other because she’s nursed/fed the infant and spent many hours comforting her baby. She’s taken time in the toddler stage to praise his developments and engage in play. She’s questioned the child about his day, interested in the relationships he’s forming. She’s helped with homework and brought him to sports, art, music, and church events. The father has a very large role as well, but as you read through 2 Kings, you will noticed an interesting pattern. The mother’s name and place of birth or father she came from gets shared for every king that “did what was right in the Lord’s sight” (1 Kings 12:2) The culture of Israel at the time was deep in idol worship. Israel’s kings were evil and took every opportunity to provoke the Lord to anger. Even the kings of Judah didn’t stop the idol worship at the high places, but they were doing better than the Israelite states at the time. Why? The mothers that were from Israel or Judah, or had a father from the priestly line, raised her son to know Yahweh. Even if the father didn’t fully regard the Lord, the mother did everything she could to make sure that her son knew the Law and honoured the Lord by it.

2 Timothy 1:5 CSB

5 I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and now, I am convinced, is in you also.

Motherhood influences a child’s view with the world: By example, a child will learn selfishness, pride, judgment, and isolation or they will learn acceptance, humility, service and community. A mother has the influence to raise a child as the center of the world or to raise them as a life giver to the world.📷

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Galatians 5:13-14 ESV)

Motherhood influences relationship with Jesus: It is true that a mother will influence a child’s knowledge of Christ by practicing the spiritual disciplines (Bible study, prayer, fellowship etc…) of Christianity. But it will be a mother’s practice of authentic and transparent love that transforms a child’s experience and true relationship with God. Love is an action, not a feeling. Love is a choice mother’s make every day when parenting feels like the hardest thing you have ever done. The Lord Places Mothers in a Unique Position of Spiritual Influence:

Mothers hold a unique position of spiritual influence, shaping the faith and character of their children.Just as Timothy was influenced by his mother and grandmother, mothers today impact generations with their faith.

Reflection:

Mary's call to motherhood was extraordinary in its divine purpose and humble acceptance. How do all mothers reflect this extraordinary calling?Dedication involves prioritizing someone or something above oneself. How can mothers dedicate themselves to God in their calling?In our culture, mothers face numerous challenges. How can we support and honor them in their journey?

Conclusion: As we reflect on the precious power of mothers, let us honor and celebrate their unwavering dedication, sacrificial love, and profound influence. May we support them in their divine calling, knowing that through their nurturing, they shape the future with God's love. Amen.

The Father entrusted Mary to loving and nurturing Jesus.

Mother’s get the privilege teaching their children to love and believe in Jesus.

The primary call of mothers is to disciple their children.

Mary chosen to mother Jesus heart love and suffer.

Mothers get to raise Children to love Jesus

I am thankful the women in my family and life who have acted like a spiritual mom for me. Every woman goes through difficult seasons. That’s why living in Christ’s community is so important. Whether you’re a baby or 99 years old. We all need people listening and speaking God’s truth and wisdom into our lives, to help us stay on course and following after the Lord’s ways. Thank you to each woman who has embraced this and is either a mother or has acted as one in order to guide others in a Christ honouring way. The Lord sees and honours each one. Happy Mother’s Day to every biological, adoptive, and spiritual momma out there. You are an incredible asset for the Kingdom of God.

The Power of a Mother

📷

Motherhood – a gift of cherished moments.e in order to guide others in a Christ honouring way. The Lord sees and honours each one. Happy Mother’s Day to every biological, adoptive, and spiritual momma out there. You are an incredible asset for the Kingdom of God.

Conclusion:

As we honor mothers today, let us recognize the profound significance of their role in God’s divine plan. Let us celebrate their unwavering dedication, sacrificial love, and profound influence. May we support and uplift mothers in their journey, knowing that through their nurturing, they play an indispensable part in shaping the world for generations to come. Amen.

Reflection:

Mary's call to motherhood was extraordinary in its divine purpose and humble acceptance. How do all mothers reflect this extraordinary calling?

How can we celebrate, encourage, and honor the dedication of mothers as they prioritize others above themselves, dedicating themselves to God in their calling?

In our culture, mothers face numerous challenges. How can we support and honor them in their journey?