Godly Mothers

This morning as we celebrate this special Sunday, called Mother’s Day, I hope that we can all rejoice and be glad in it. Whether your mom is alive or already passed on, my hope is that today you can remember and let those past or present memories bring a smile to your face.

ILL:

Favorite memory of mom and snake…

I am sure that most of you have a favorite memory of your mom or of a mother figure in your life.

One summer evening during a violent thunderstorm a mother was tucking her young son into bed. She was about to turn off the light when he asked with a tremor in his voice, "Mommy, will you sleep with me tonight?" The mother smiled and gave him a reassuring hug. "I can’t, Dear," she said, "I have to sleep with your daddy." A long silence occurred then he said in a shaky voice "That Big Sissy!"...

Meat:

We could share story after story, but our best picture of parenting especially being a mom is found in God’s Word. Turn with me to 1 Samuel chapter 1. This morning I want to look at the life of Hannah and as we do, we can glean several principles or

Characteristics of a Godly Mom:

Before we read today’s passage, let me give you a little bit of context…

There was a man named Elkanah who had two wives: Hannah and Penniah. Penniah was able to have children but Hannah could not. You need to understand that, in this culture, to be barren, was believed to be a sign of personal sin or a cursed life. Penniah loved to point out that Hannah was alone and incomplete. Hannah could ignore Penniah most of the time, but every year they made a trip to worship. The entire family would go along. Penninah with all her children and Hannah who felt very much like a fifth wheel.

Finally Hannah reached her breaking point. She could not endure the ridicule any longer so she went to the door of the tabernacle, fell face down and began to pray and weep.

(Read 1 Samuel 1:9-20)…

The first characteristic of a Godly Mom as seen in the life of Hannah is one who...

1. Believes in the Power of Prayer

Hannah realized that the only one who could help her was God. In that day many men and women went through the motions in prayer. But scripture says that Hannah laid it all out before her God.

v.10 “And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the LORD and wept in anguish.”

The Hebrew word that is translated as “bitterness” is “Marah”… does that sound familiar??… … When Naomi and Ruth moved back to the Land of Judah and some of Naomi’s old friends saw her, what did she tell them??… … “Don’t call me Naomi (which means Pleasant), but call me Mara, for the Lord has dealt very bitterly with me...”

This word “Marah” describes being discontent, maybe harboring a bit of anger, impatient, annoyed… you know… bitter.

The night that Caleb went missing, I had come back to the campground to wait for the park ranger to show up to begin with the search party. Melissa was still up on the hill side looking. As I was talking with the park ranger, I saw her come back into camp, as I walked towards her, she just collapsed on the ground, weeping in anguish… and for the next 14 hours we wept and we prayed.

In bitterness of soul Hannah collapsed on the doorway of the tabernacle and there she wept in anguish and prayed to the Lord... In fact her prayer was so intense that The priest, Eli, thought she was drunk.

vv. 12-14 “And it happened, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. 14 So Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!”

Have you ever been so distraught, you are crying uncontrollably and you want to say something but you just cannot get the words out? Or maybe, you were cry uncontrollably but you are able to get yourself calmed down enough, but if you try to speak you will just lose control again?… … I am pretty sure that is what is happening here.

Hanna’s mouth was moving, but no understandable words were coming out. Either because of all the weeping and she could talk legibly or because she new if she tried to speak out loud she would just start weeping uncontrollably again.

Eli’s first thought is “who is this crazy woman?” He draws an assumption an rebukes her for being drunk. Hanna, through the tears is able to correct him and says…

vv. 15-16 “No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD. 16 Do not consider your maidservant a wicked woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief I have spoken until now.”

Two weeks ago we looked at “The Power of Prayer” and we saw the importance of having “laser guided missile prayers” as opposed to “carpet bombing prayers”. Even though laser guided missile’s wouldn’t be invented for thousands of years, Hannah understood the concept… Back in v. 11 we find her specific request…

“Then she made a vow and said, “O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.”

We are not going to get into the logistics of her vow this morning, but what was her request?? Did she just ask for a baby?… no, she specifically asked for a “male child”…

Hannah’s situation seemed hopeless and so out of hopelessness and helplessness came her “laser guided missile” prayer.

Randy Travis has a song entitled “When Mama Prayed”… and I couldn’t help but think about that song as I was developing this sermon. The chorus of the song says…

“When Mama prayed, good things happened When Mama prayed, lives were changed Not much more than five foot tall But mountains big and small Crumbled all the way when Mama prayed”

But I want y’all to understand something… it is not just mama’s prayers that get answered. Through Jesus Christ, we all have access to the Father and we must make sure that we are spending time with Him in prayer.

Philippians 4:6 “6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;”

The power of prayer is available to anyone who has put their faith in Christ.

After Hannah assured Eli that she was not drunk and that she was just making her request known to God, he blesses her with these words…

vv. 17-18 “Then Eli answered and said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.”

18 And she said, “Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.” So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.”

Why was her face no longer sad??… because she fully believed that her prayers would be answered and that God was going to give her a son… And that is what it means to “believe in the power of prayer”… in vv. 19-20 we see that Samuel is born.

The second characteristic of a godly mother is that…

2. She Teaches Her Children About God

vv. 21-23 “Now the man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “Not until the child is weaned; then I will take him, that he may appear before the LORD and remain there forever.”

23 So Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him. Only let the LORD establish His word.” Then the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him.”

Hannah made motherhood a priority in her life. She actively poured as much of her life, love, and care into her little baby boy.

Susanna was a Christian mother whose witness and love for her children helped alter the course of church history. Born in England in 1669, Susanna oversaw the spiritual and educational development of her 19 children — only 10 of whom survived to adulthood — while her husband Samuel was away from home for lengthy periods.

On a rotating basis, each child had a night for individual conversation and prayer with Susanna. She wrote commentaries on the Apostles Creed, the Ten Commandments and the Lord’s Prayer as curriculum for her children.

Susanna’s last name was Wesley… she was the mother of John Wesley, who lead thousands to Christ, and his brother Charles Wesley, who is responsible for writing over 6,000 hymns, one of which is “Hark the herald angel’s sing”

Another preacher said this of his mother;... “Of all the people I have ever known, she had the greatest influence on me. … She and my father didn’t have much education … but my mother was a woman of God.

She always had devotions with us, she always prayed with us, she always loved us, and did so many things, as I look back now, out of the way. And she and my father, when I was in Bible school, they would go up to a room upstairs and kneel down every morning at 10 o’clock to pray for their son in Bible school.” -Billy Graham

As Hannah was raising Samuel for the first few years of his life, I am certain that she was preparing him for the transition into Eli’s care. She would’ve told him what a blessing he was, a gift from God… she would’ve told him about her love for God and the vow that she made, she would have assured him that even though they couldn’t be together everyday, that she would visit as often as she could. I am certain that he would’ve been involved (as well as any young child) in the daily routines, prayers and sacrifices…

Folks, again, this isn’t just for moms to do… We need to be teaching our kids about God, about His love, about His Salvation…

Salvation is built on the knowledge of the truth revealed in Scripture. Children need to know more than “Jesus wants to be your friend, so you need to invite Him into your heart.” They need to know what God’s Word reveals about the condition of their hearts, that they are rebellious and disobedient toward God.

They need to know that God is loving, but also that He is holy and just, and that He will bring terrible, everlasting punishment on those who do not turn from their sins and trust in Christ. They need to know what Christ did on the cross, dying as our substitute.

They need to understand that God forgives our sin because of His kindness, apart from our good works. They need to know what saving faith is, as opposed to empty profession that does not result in salvation.

But teaching these things is not enough… we must live it! Your kids, grand-kids, nieces, nephews, neighbor kids, whoever... should see you applying Scripture and you should teach them how to apply it to the things they face as they grow to maturity.

Yes, there will come a time when young children reach the age of adulthood, they get out on their own and start making their own decisions… our prayer is that they live their lives according to the Scriptures, but unfortunately, sometimes they don’t.

That doesn’t mean that your time was wasted… because you made your choice to follow the Lord’s leading and now they are making their own choice. It just means that you have another target for your laser guided missile prayers.

This leads us to our final characteristic this morning… a godly mother…

3. Has the Ability to Let Go

vv. 24-18 “Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the LORD in Shiloh. And the child was young. 25 Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said, “O my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the LORD. 27 For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. 28 Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.”

Hannah kept her word she vowed that if God gave her a son she would give him completely to the work of God. And as hard as it was she let him go.

Hannah was given her dream of a son, and she was allowed to enjoy that dream for a while. I want you to know that God is not some lofty kill-joy looking to take away the things that give us pleasure. He loves us and He cares for us… But we need to make sure that we are taking for granted the gifts that He gives us here on earth.

I am reminded of the words the Apostle Paul wrote in

2 Corinthians 4:18 “18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

All of the things of this world are temporary… your house, your bank account, the oceans, the trees, the valley’s, the mountains… the breath in our lungs… temporary… we need to enjoy them while they are here and because, as James said “Life is but a vapor”… what is here today can be gone tomorrow… Our focus needs to be on the eternal things.

Yesterday was the celebration of life service for Greg Wynsma’s dad. It is a time of grief and sorrow for the family because Roger’s temporary body no longer has life in it. However, it is also a time of rejoicing because Roger’s eternal soul is now in the presence of Christ... and for his family members that have placed their faith in Christ, the separation is only temporary and their reunion in heaven will last for eternity.

Hannah wasn’t focused on the temporary things, but the eternal things. She sacrificed a temporary life with her son and offered him to the Lord to be used in God’s service, and because God was first in her life it was seen as an act of worship… even though it may have caused a bit of heartache.

For those of you that are mothers here today, I am sure you have seen your fair share of heartache. Perhaps your husband walked out on you and left you as a single mom to raise the kids alone. Maybe you are a stay-at-home-mom, and you and your husband are trying live off of one income and you are having financial difficulties. Maybe your teenagers are living rebelliously, or perhaps you have a child getting ready to leave the nest.

Everyone’s situation and heartache is a little different… Hannah’s heartache was giving up her son, her only son… and yet she did it willingly… listen again to vv. 27-28… “27 For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. 28 Therefore I also have lent (dedicated, or given) him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent (dedicated, or given) to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.”

The lesson for us is simple… When troubles or heartaches surround you... the best thing you can do is worship the Lord.

Philippians 4:8–9 NKJV

8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

It is so easy to get caught up in all of the negatives that surround or cause our troubles and heartaches… but if we “meditate on these things...” then Scripture says that “The peace of God will be with you.”

Recap:

I know that all our mother’s have or had their own personalities. But if you have or had a godly mother that…

Believed in the power of prayer

Taught you about the Lord

and had the ability to let go

Then make sure to take time to thank God today for her. If you are still blessed to be able to talk to your mom, either via phone call or stopping by, I encourage you to do that today, as we are not guaranteed tomorrow.

This message is not just for mothers though… We should all…

- Believe in the power of prayer

- Teach others about the Lord

- and have the ability to let go, because everything belongs to the Lord anyway and it is up to Him what happens to it.

Closing:

As we get ready to close I want to leave you with this…

Hannah’s name means - to be shown favor or shown grace… to be dealt graciously with… and when we talk about grace, we are talking about being given something that we don’t deserve… Or been given a free gift…

Hannah was given the gift of a son when she was formerly barren, but then she willingly gave her son back to God as a gift to Him, out of her love and devotion to the Lord; and Hannah’s gift to God was a huge sacrifice.

Similar to Hannah, God gave up His Son as a sacrifice and as a gift, and He gave that gift to us – the gift of His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 6:23 tells us, “The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The word for gift is the word grace (charis) in the Greek. John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Do you believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life? Will you accept the free gift and sacrifice of God’s Son given for you – the gift of eternal life?