A MOTHER’S LEGACY
2 Timothy 1:5
Sermon Objective: Three principles that should govern a mom as she raises her kids to know and follow Jesus Christ.
INTRO
Indira Ghandi once said, “If you give me good mothers I will give you a good nation.”
Her comment is not unique. Many world leaders have understood the value and influence that the home (and mom in particular) can have.
• President John Quincy Adams once said, “All that I am my mother made me.”
• President Abraham Lincoln once said, “All that I am or hope to be I owe to my angel mother.”
• Napoleon Bonaparte said, "Give France good mothers and France will have good sons."
• Thomas Edison said, "It was at critical times in my life that my mother believed in me, and because of her faith in me, I became a great inventor."
Evidence has proven the influence of a godly mother in other ways too.
James Dobson once said, “Countless times each day a mother does what no one else can do quite as well. She wipes away a tear, whispers a word of hope, eases a child's fear. She teaches, ministers, loves, and nurtures the next generation of citizens. And she challenges and cajoles her kids to do their best and be the best. But no editorials praise these accomplishments. Where is the coverage our mothers rightfully deserve?”
Well, that is what we are here to do today – give them the coverage they rightly deserve.
I seriously doubt any one here would disagree with the enormous influence a mother can have on society. I also seriously doubt that any of us here would deny that we, regardless of the quality at hand, always need more godly, Spirit-filled mothers to guide society’s children.
Timothy, one of the first pastors in the young Christian Church (he pastored in Ephesus), is an example of the godly influence of a mom … and grandmother too. What a compliment the Apostle Paul pays his mother Lois and his grandmother Eunice! He mentions them by name and gives them direct credit for Timothy’s “sincere faith.”
I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. (2 Timothy 1:5)
This verse compels me to ask myself, just what are the principles that make it possible for a mom to pass her faith on to her children?
#1
MOM, YOUR CHILDREN NEED TO SEE YOU PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO YOUR OWN SPIRITUAL NEEDS AND SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT.
I have told you before about the prayer life of Susannah Wesley. She was John and Charles’ mother and is referred to by some as “The mother of Methodism.” She was a powerful influence on their faith and life-style. Her piety and compassion multiplied themselves many times over in these two children.
Susannah’s father was a minister and she was born in England in 1669 as the youngest of twenty-five children! Susannah was married at 19 to Samuel Wesley, also a minister and, not to be outdone, she had nineteen children herself. She always wanted to do big things for God and she did so by humbly raising children to serve Him.
Susannah prayed two hours a day. She organized her children so this could be accomplished. John and Charles, as little boys, just watched their mom. Every day they watched her flip her apron up over her head and pray.
Is it any wonder John and Charles gave their lives to the Gospel and preached an evangelical salvation all across England? It is any wonder Susannah Wesley’s legacy lives on today – over 340 years after her birth!?
Rev. Terry Laughlin Wrote: {The} Christian mother will train, equip and care for herself in a way that benefits the family. A mother of godly influence works to keep herself healthy, alert and well equipped for the work God has laid before her. She will ask herself the most important question, “Will this or that ensure a Christian upbringing of our children or will it keep us too busy for the things of God? Many a Christian mother has done without in order to enjoy the pleasure of sacrificial love, doing what it takes to ensure that her children are being brought up in the faith as Timothy’s mother and grandmother had done.
Moms -- if you want your children to grow up with your faith then they better see it at work and working! They need to see it really change you into the image of Jesus. Otherwise it’s just a religion and they will select the one that fancies them best. There is no guarantee that your kids will grow up to be a John or Charles Wesley but the odds are definitely against them if you are not a person of authentic, practical faith.
There are a lot of reasons to give attention to your own spiritual development but the legacy you leave your children is at the top of the list.
There is the story of a young man who went off to college and defied some of the values of his rearing that he had acquired in a Christian home. He had pornographic pictures on the walls. One day his mother came to visit him. She saw his walls but said nothing. Instead, she sent him a picture of herself and asked him to hang it up on his wall. The next time she went to see him the other pictures had been removed. And her picture was there hanging on the wall. She asked him about it and he replied, "You see mother, I could not have those pictures beside yours. They would be out of place." (A. Naismith. 1200 Notes, Quotes and Anecdotes. Great Britain: Pickering Paperbacks, 1988, p. 193).
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D. E. Buffaloe spoke so appreciative of his mother’s sensitivity to his need to know about the things of God, and especially her need of living a God fearing life before her children. She made the time to teach him to pray and made sure he had what he needed to learn about the Lord Jesus. She denied herself certain pleasures in order to have the finances and especially the time to help oversee the spiritual training of her children.
When he grew up he did what many have done, he walked away from the teachings and the Christian example of his mother. During that time he remembered his mom’s faith and teaching about prayer and the Word of God, thus, he prayed a real heartfelt prayer to receive Christ as Savior and Lord.
He is now a pastor of a church and he makes this plea to all mothers on Mother’s Day, “Mothers, be sensitive to your children’s needs by turning off the television and worldly distractions and making the time to plant seeds that the Holy Spirit can use to lead your children to Christ. Lay a foundation that will cause them to consider Christ.”
What are the principles that help a mom to pass her faith on to her children?
• Children need to see you pay close attention to your own spiritual needs and spiritual development.
#2
MOM, YOUR CHILDREN NEED YOU TO SERVE THEM WITH THE FINAL GOAL IN MIND
President Abraham Lincoln once said, “All that I am or hope to be I owe to my angel mother. I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.”
Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”
May I tell you something else about Susannah Wesley? Not only did she pray two hours each day, in addition, she took each of her 19 children aside for a full hour every week to discuss spiritual matters. She also expected each child to be able to read the Book of Genesis by the time he or she was six years child.
Last weekend when Pastor Joe and his wife, Kathy, were having lunch with Vickie and me the role of a parent and parenting came up. As you may or may not know, Kathy operates a day care and like many who work day in and day out with children, she sees firsthand the impact that proactive parenting can have. She sees the values that are intentionally passed on and she sees the miss-steps that happen when a parent simply assumes their children will grow up to be good people. She also sees the parents that have never thought about what they are trying to make of their children and are more concerned about what their children think of them here and now.
You see, there are many people who don’t understand how important it is to begin grooming and nurturing their children to be good people at the earliest of ages. In neglecting this they (and their children) become prey for the enemy. When a mother fails to see the importance of teaching a child proactively she will have a hard time saying “no” or expecting a child to act responsibly because she is focusing on “the here and now” rather than the soul she is creating.
Mothers: parenting requires you to keep the end result in mind. It requires you to have a vision of the values and behaviors you want your child to embody in adulthood. It requires you to consistently expect, model, and enforce that picture.
• If you want a child to grow up being industrious – teach them the joy involved doing routine chores.
• If you want your children to be responsible – teach them to do their chores faithfully and teach them the importance of keeping their word – even when it is inconvenient or requires sacrifice on their part.
• If you want your children to be honest – teach them the value of living a life of integrity and holiness where they have nothing to hide.
• If you want them to be humble – teach them the value and dignity of other people. Teach them that we are all made in God’s image and the people are worth honoring and loving.
The list goes on but the principle is the same in each case – you cannot assume a child will grow up to be Christian, civil, self-less, loving, kind, responsible, patient, friendly, or faith-filled. You have to have a vision of what you want your children to become and begin at birth to fashion that into the child.
Chuck Swindoll writes: “You remember coming home in the afternoon after school feeling very hungry and your mother had supper on the stove? And you remember at times she would have a cake in the oven? I don’t know why mothers put children through such torture. When you were so hungry, the aroma of the cake filled the house, and you wanted a piece of that cake. ‘Not until after supper.’ Every mother I’ve ever met says that. Being the model child I was, I would wait patiently, except on a few occasions when I would badger her for a slice of that cake. And then she would take an exceedingly sharp knife with an exceedingly thin blade and slice off the smallest slice of cake one can imagine and give me a little taste of the cake. It was only a sample to what was to come later.”
(Swindoll’s Ultimate Book of Illustrations & Quotes)
Mom, just like that piece of cake you give is only a foretaste of what is to come so the spiritual grooming you do and the firstfruits of it you see in childhood and youth are only a hint of the godly saint you are developing. It is worth your effort and faithfulness.
What are the principles that help a mom to pass her faith on to her children?
• Children need to see you pay close attention to your own spiritual needs and spiritual development.
• Children need you to serve them with the final goal in mind
#3
MOM, YOUR CHILDREN NEED YOU TO MODEL A GODLY FAMILY VIA YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR HUSBAND
Titus 2:4-5 reads: 4 Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
Daughters learn how to treat their children and husbands by watching the way their mom’s treat those in the family. Sons learn how to love and honor women by watching how mother is loved and honored. They learn what a good woman is like by what they see in their mom. The Scriptures teach that both sins and blessings can be generational. The habits will be passed on. Good habits and good modeling can be modeled from one generation to the next.
God says He will show His love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments. (Exodus 20:6) That’s a legacy ladies! That is what can happen when you choose to surrender to a living and loving God and allow him to work through you. Your responsibility and opportunity is the greatest with your own children.
It is important mom, that your kids see you treat your husband correctly. It is important that they learn how to be humble, submissive, teachable, generous, loving, service-filled, and faithful from you. How they see a home modeled is what they will take as the norm. It is how they will run their homes.
WRAP-UP
What are the principles that help a mom to pass her faith on to her children?
• Children need to see you pay close attention to your own spiritual needs and spiritual development.
• Children need you to serve them with the final goal in mind
• Children need you to model a Godly family via your relationship with your husband
“Values are caught not taught.” What you do goes so much further than what you say.
Our children will face many battles that threaten their souls. Therefore, they need mothers (and grandmothers) who will intentionally choose to have a Godly influence.
Elementary school students were asked several questions about moms. Here are their answers:
Why did God make mothers?
• She’s the only one who knows where the Scotch tape is.
• Mostly to clean the house.
• To help us out of there when we were getting born.
How did God make mothers?
• He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
• Magic, plus superpowers and a lot of stirring.
• God made my mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.
What ingredients are mothers made of?
• God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world. . .and one dab of mean.
• They had to get their start from men’s bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
• We’re related.
• God knew she likes me a lot more than other people’s moms like me.
Don’t believe for one minute that children will always compliment their mom:
When first-graders were asked to complete the sentence, "My mother cooks the best . . ." one boy supplied "that she can."
(From Johnny Creasong’s Sermon: Mary, Didn’t You Know?)
If I was to ask your children to describe you in one sentence what would they say?
• She loves Jesus?
• She loves me?
• She loves my daddy?
#1) Children need to see you pay close attention to your own spiritual needs and spiritual development.
#2) Children need you to serve them with the final goal in mind
#3) Children need you to model a Godly family via your relationship with your husband
I am not trying to inflict more guilt on you than is already there. Simply being a parent and being imperfect inflicts enough guilt. But I am trying to show you how valuable you are! I am trying to remind you that what you do matters enormously! I am trying to encourage you to pursue your calling as a mother with a sense of joy and depth.
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A PRAYER FOR OUR MOTHERS:
Loving God, as a mother gives life and nourishment to her children, so you watch over your Church.
Bless these women, that they may be strengthened as Christian mothers.
Let the example of their faith and love shine forth.
Grant that we, their sons and daughters, may honor them always with a spirit of profound respect.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.
Amen
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This sermon is provided by Dr. Kenneth Pell
Potsdam Church of the Nazarene
Potsdam, New York
www.potsdam-naz.org
