Is Mom A Superhero?

Is Mom a Superhero?

Proverbs 31:10–31 NKJV

Who can find a virtuous wife?

For her worth is far above rubies.

The heart of her husband safely trusts her;

So he will have no lack of gain.

She does him good and not evil

All the days of her life.

She seeks wool and flax,

And willingly works with her hands.

She is like the merchant ships,

She brings her food from afar.

She also rises while it is yet night,

And provides food for her household,

And a portion for her maidservants.

She considers a field and buys it;

From her profits she plants a vineyard.

She girds herself with strength,

And strengthens her arms.

She perceives that her merchandise is good,

And her lamp does not go out by night.

She stretches out her hands to the distaff,

And her hand holds the spindle.

She extends her hand to the poor,

Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.

She is not afraid of snow for her household,

For all her household is clothed with scarlet.

She makes tapestry for herself;

Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

Her husband is known in the gates,

When he sits among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them,

And supplies sashes for the merchants.

Strength and honor are her clothing;

She shall rejoice in time to come.

She opens her mouth with wisdom,

And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

She watches over the ways of her household,

And does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children rise up and call her blessed;

Her husband also, and he praises her:

“Many daughters have done well,

But you excel them all.”

Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,

But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Give her of the fruit of her hands,

And let her own works praise her in the gates.

Today is the Sunday in which we honor our mothers. Some will still be able to tell their mother how much she means to him/her. Others will have to remember their mothers who have gone on. It is altogether proper that we take this time to honor our mother. After all, The bible does just say to honor your father. We have a day for that. But the commandment says to honor your father and your mother. We would not be here if our mothers had not given birth to us. And we would not have prospered if she had not borne with us, even in difficult times.

We read a well-known passage from Proverbs this morning, a passage often read for Mother’s Day or at the funeral of a mother. It is the story of an exceptional woman, a wife and a mother. In all her efforts to raise her son, Lemuel, she sacrificed her time and effort to care for her household. We can read of a few of her exploits. She got up before sunrise to prepare food for her family. Not only that, it says her lamp does not go out at night. This mother was an excellent planner. She god food for the family from afar. She did not idle herself at any time. In this, she would have fit John Wesley’s idea of the perfect woman, seeing how much that he hated people who idled away their time. She spent time making fine clothes for her family. In those days, it was very laborious to make clothing. The thread had to be spun, then weaved, then dyed, then cut to fit. This alone would be exhausting work. Not only this, she also ran a business to help provide for her family. she spent time in moral and religious instruction for her family. She purchased real estate. She was of the most trustful character. Truly, she was a woman who was far more valuable than rubies.

Where can we find a woman like that. For John Wesley, his mother Susanna came close to fitting the bill. She was the wife of an Epworth pastor of modest means. when we also think she had something like 19 children, we can only think how busy her life was. Even though some of the children died young, she raised several children into adulthood, three of whom entered the ministry. She took individual time to teach the Christian faith to her children. We can also think of the household chores. She must have been an excellent manager of the household. So we do have some examples for women superheroes and the influences they had on their households, and in the case of Susanna Wesley, an influence that changed the world through John and Charles Wesley.

We live in a world today in which women are expected to keep the household as well as pursue a career to help support her family. In too many cases, they have to do this as single mothers. The life of the modern woman seems overwhelming. We do have some assistance from technologies, and we can buy clothing at the store rather than having to have her spend the time making them. But the day of the modern mother starts before daylight and ends well after sunset. This can lead to burnout and exhaustion.