Moms are the best aren’t they? I have a great mom, she's awesome. She read books with me every night before bed when I was a kid. By 6th grade I had read about 10,000 books. We would often read the same books over and over, and I began to learn the styles and patterns for writing, and later on I would become a writer and blogger. Pretty cool.
So today I’d like to draw your attention to some awesome mother’s from the Bible and Christian history. Think of first of all Mary the mother of Jesus, and Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist.
Mary and Elizabeth don’t know it at that time, but God is literally going to change the world through the two children growing in their bellies. Isn’t that an amazing honor that women have, to raise up such great people of faith?
I think of Susanna Wesley the mother of Methodism. She trained up John and Charles, just as a mother, but she was utterly dedicated to her calling to be a great mother. She meticulously raised John and Charles to be men of God. And through her ministry to them, and their ministry to the world, millions of souls came into contact with Jesus Christ.
In the same way Elizabeth would give birth to John the Baptist. Does anyone here think John the Baptist is awesome? Very early on in my Christian life I thought John the Baptist was really, really cool. He lives in the wilderness, he’s an outcast, eating wild honey, crazy hair, eating bugs, preaching the word, rallying the people, the grassroots, to be prepared to welcome and embrace the coming of Jesus. And then we have Jesus, God come to Earth. He’s the savior, the king, our God, the maker of the universe, and the designer of the human soul. He’s goodness, love, holiness, purity, tenderness, friendship, and mystery before our very eyes. And it all started with Mary, and Elizabeth. Two mothers.
When I think of a great mother I also think of Abraham’s wife Sarah from the old testament. She had to wait a long time before she was able to conceive a child. In fact Sarah was considered barren. Yet she always longed to have a baby. And eventually God fulfilled her dream. And her son Isaac would be a great hero of the Bible.
I think of Naomi from the Bible. Her husband died and she was alone. Then her sons died as well. But her son’s wife Ruth stayed with Naomi. And Naomi guided Ruth as if Ruth were her own daughter. Maybe your own mother wasn’t much of a blessing. Maybe she wasn’t really there for you. But maybe you had another motherly figure in your life, someone who wasn’t your mom, but was more of a mother to you than anyone else in your life. That’s who Naomi was. She was a mother to Ruth, guiding her to make right choices and do God’s will. Here’s a word for you, if you didn’t have a great mother, maybe you can be a great mother to your own children, or be a great mother to someone who else who you care about? Pray about it.
Another motherly hero from the Bible was Samson's mother. We don’t even know her name from the Bible. But she honored God so well, by raising up Samson in the Lord. And even when Samson went astray and made bad choices, she continued to pray for him and hope for him and try to guide him to do the right things. Samson sinned greatly, but in the end he turned back to the Lord and the Lord granted him a great victory before he died.
Many, many of us here are only still breathing because we had a praying mother or a praying grandmother. Otherwise we’d be long dead. Mother, if you have a wayward son or daughter, whose causing trouble, keep praying and keep being that voice of loving accountability in their life! Never give up! Samson’s mom never did, and Samson won the day.
I think of another mother from Christian history, the famous Mother Teresa. This woman was a mother to so many who needed her. She served lost and homeless children on the streets of Calcutta, India. She was a mother to the world. Many mothers out there may not even have children, but they are mothering a whole bunch of people, friends, family members, neighbors and coworkers. It’s a great thing. Maybe God is calling you today to be a mother to a whole community of people. Maybe God is calling you to adopt children and change their stories forever. Pray about it.
I also think of Abigail Adams, a great mother from history. She was wife to the 2nd president of the united states John Adams. While John was often away on business, serving in the political sphere Abigail single-handedly raised their children, was in charge of the farm, and loved her husband dearly as well. In fact one of Abigail’s children John Quincy Adams wrote: "My mother was an angel upon earth. She was a minister of blessing to all human beings within her sphere of action. Her heart was the abode of heavenly purity… She was the real personification of female virtue, of piety, of charity, of ever active and never intermitting benevolence."
Being a mom is hard. It isn’t easy. It’s hard work. But women who raise their children up right, in the Lord, teaching them the Bible, end up being blessed, because their children will often go on to do great things for the Lord.
Our culture often diminishes motherhood as something that’s not of much value. Nothing could be further from the truth. Children need great mothers and fathers to prosper. Motherhood is huge for children and our society. If you can be a great mother out their leading your children to worship Jesus, you can change the world. That’s what it’s all about when we consider loving people as Christ loves us.
In conclusion, happy mothers day to all the moms out there, even if you aren’t a biological mother, maybe you’re a mother in a different way, to people you know and friends. Reflect on the great mothers of the Bible and Christian history. Be a heroic mother who raises up her children in the Lord. Raising your children in the Lord may be the single great accomplishment of your life, that in the future means millions will come to know Christ because of them. Amen.
