MELVIN NEWLAND, MINISTER RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
TEXT: Ephesians 6:1-3; Proverbs 17:22, 31:10-31
ILL. Six-year-old Johnny & his 4-year-old sister Suzy presented their mom with a Mother’s Day present; a small house plant. While it wasn’t the finest looking specimen, they had bought it with their own money & Mom was thrilled. She hugged & kissed her children & told them she loved them for thinking of her.
Johnny said, "There were some other flowers we wanted to buy for you, but we didn’t have enough money." "Yeah," said sister Suzy, "they had a real nice bunch of flowers at the shop that we wanted to buy."
"But I love this plant," said the happy mother. "I know, Mom," said Johnny, "but those flowers would have been perfect for you. They were in a wreath & they had a ribbon that said ’REST IN PEACE’ & you’re always asking us for a little peace so you can rest.”
ILL. A 6-year-old boy, separated from his mother in a supermarket, began to call frantically for “Martha! Martha! Martha!” That was his mother’s name & she quickly came running to him. “But, honey,” she said, “you shouldn’t call me ‘Martha’, I’m ‘Mother’ to you.” “Yeah, I know,” he answered, “but this store is full of mothers.”
Our world is full of mothers, but we have only one mother who is special to each of us.
ILL. Did you hear about the three sons who left home, went out on their own & prospered? Getting back together, they discussed the gifts they were able to give their elderly mother.
The first said, "I built a big house for mother." The second said, "I sent her a Mercedes with a driver." The third smiled & said, "I’ve got you both beat. You remember how mom enjoyed reading the Bible? And you know she can’t see very well now. I sent her a remarkable parrot that recites the entire Bible.
“It took experts 12 years to teach him. He’s one of a kind. Mama just has to name the chapter & verse, & the parrot recites it."
Soon thereafter, mom sent out her letters of thanks: "Milton", she wrote, "The house you built is so huge. I live in only three rooms, but I have to clean the whole house."
"Gerald", she wrote, "I’m too old to travel. I stay most of the time at home, so I rarely use the Mercedes.”
"Dear Donald," she wrote to her third son, "You have the good sense to know what your mother likes. The chicken was delicious!"
A delicious chicken dinner on Mother’s Day might be nice, but not a parrot dinner.
On Mother’s Day we can’t say enough good things about our mothers, but we’ll try.
PROP. From Proverbs 31 I want to mention some things that mothers are, or mothers do, in order to honor them today.
The first point is - Her Hands Work.
I. HER HANDS WORK
ILL. A boy got his first job. As he was boasting about the amount of work he did, he said, "I get up at 5 a.m. & have my breakfast."
He was asked, "Does anyone else get up too?" He replied, "Oh yes, mother gets up & fixes my breakfast & dad’s breakfast."
"And what about your dinner?" The boy said, "Oh, mother, fixes that too."
"Does your mother have the afternoon to herself?" The boy replied, "No, mama cleans the house, looks after the other children, & then gets supper for me & dad when we come home. Then we watch TV before we go to bed."
"What about your mother? What does she do?" The boy replied, "Mama usually washes some clothes & irons the rest of the evening."
"Do you get paid?" "Of course, Dad & I get paid." "And what about your mother, does she get paid too?" The boy replied, "Mother get paid? Mother don’t get paid. She don’t do no work."
ILL. There is a cartoon that shows a mother in her home. Her hair is in disarray, kids are everywhere, & the house is an absolute shambles. Then her husband comes home from work all neatly dressed in coat & tie, carrying his briefcase.
She takes one look at him & He looks at her with a big question mark on his face. She tells him, "You come home every evening & ask what I do all day. Well, today I didn’t do it, & here it is!"
In Proverbs 31, we see that mothers do all kinds of work.
Vs’s 13,19,22 tell us she sews, "She selects wool...and works with eager hands." Vs. 14 says she shops, "bringing her food from afar."
Vs. 15 says she cooks, "She provides food for her family..."
Vs. 16 says "She plants a vineyard..."
Vs. 15 says she "gets up while it is still dark" to prepare food.
Vs. 18 says "her lamp does not go out at night."
Vs. 27 says "She watches over the affairs of her household & does not eat the bread of idleness." She isn’t lazy.
WHAT’S THAT OLD SAYING? "Man works from sun to sun, but woman’s work is never done."
So again, according to Proverbs 31, point #1 is – Her Hands Work.
II. HER MOUTH SPEAKS
Prov. 31:26 "She speaks with wisdom & faithful instruction is on her tongue."
ILL. A London editor submitted to Winston Churchill for his approval a list of all those who had been Churchill’s teachers. Churchill returned the list with this comment: “You have omitted to mention the greatest of my teachers - my mother.”
ILL. The great English preacher, G. Campbell Morgan, had 4 sons & they all became ministers of the gospel. At a family reunion, a friend asked one of the sons, "Which Morgan is the greatest preacher?" That son looked at his father, then replied, "MOTHER."
Many mothers have done a lot of preaching to their children, whether they considered it preaching or not. Our mothers taught us about manners, treating others with respect, respect for the elderly, & other matters of human decency & common courtesy.
And one preacher’s mother used to say, “I love you, but Jesus loves you more.” Her mouth speaks. Thanks, Mom, for all your instruction & wisdom.
Now remember, point #1. Her Hands Work; #2. Her Mouth Speaks.
III. HER HEART LOVES
Prov. 31:11-12 "Her husband has full confidence in her & lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life."
If a husband has full confidence in his wife, then you know that she is a woman who loves her man.
ILL. A grandmother was telling her granddaughter “goodnight” when the little girl said, "Mommy & daddy are entertaining some important people downstairs."
"Yes they are," grandma agreed, "But how did you know?" "Just listen," the little granddaughter said, "Mommy is laughing at all of daddy’s jokes.”
Prov. 17:22 "A cheerful heart is good medicine..." When there is a lot of laughter in a home, someone is putting out some good medicine. And it also shows a lot of love.
ILL. A teacher put this question to little James in math class, "James, suppose your mother made a cherry pie, & there were 7 of you at the table: your mother & father & 5 children. How much of the pie would you get?"
"A 6th," was his answer. "No, no, James. Now pay attention. There are 7 of you at the table. “Don’t you know your fractions?" "Yes, ma’am," he replied, "I know my fractions, but I know my mother even better, & she’d say that she doesn’t want any.”
The unselfishness of a mother shows a heart of love for her family. And all of us can remember unselfish acts of devotion our mothers made.
ILL. Jean Baron wrote in Readers Digest about the old mobile home where she lived with her teenage son. She said, “The home was structurally unsound, & the plumbing always leaked.” She was ashamed when her son brought friends home because of their meager surroundings.
But one day she learned that her son’s best friend, who had all the material things anyone could want, had run away from home. She said, “I was puzzled, so I asked my son why.”
He explained, “Well, mom, at their house they had a lot of environment but not very much love. Here, we have lots of love, but not much environment.”
1- Her hands work 2- Her mouth speaks 3- Her heart loves.
IV. WE CALL HER BLESSED
Prov. 31:28 “Her children arise & call her blessed; her husband also, & he praises her.”
ILL. I realize that not all mothers have been good. I can’t begin to imagine what kind of mother the infamous atheist, Madalyn Murray O’Hair was to her children. In any interview I ever saw of her, she was a hateful, spiteful acting woman, particularly when her adult son became a Christian. What a horrendous mother she must have been! I doubt that her children ever called her “blessed.”
But today, we need to be thankful for our mothers & for all the love & good they showered on us. They were perhaps not perfect but maybe better than we deserved. Here are some quotes of praise:
Pres. Abraham Lincoln said, "All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother."
Pres. George Washington wrote, "My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw… I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual & physical education I received from her."
Pres. Andrew Jackson wrote, "There never was a woman like her. She was gentle as a dove & brave as a lioness. The memory of my mother & her teachings was the only capital I had to start life with, & on that capital I have made my way."
Booker T. Washington, the great black scientist, wrote, "In all my efforts to learn to read, my mother shared fully my ambition & sympathized with me & aided me in every way she could. If I have done anything in life worth attention, I feel sure that I inherited the disposition from my mother."
So don’t miss a chance to show your love to your mother at any time. As we have opportunity let us do good to all people, especially to our mothers!
ILL. Thomas Edison said, “I did not have my mother long, but she cast over me an influence which has lasted all my life. The good effects of her early training I can never lose. If it had not been for her faith in me at a critical time in my life, I should never likely have become an inventor.
I was always a careless boy, & I should have turned out badly. But her firmness, her sweetness, her goodness, were potent powers to keep me in the right path. My mother was the making of me. The memory of her will always be a blessing to me.”
What a loving tribute! GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY, MOTHERS!
ILL. A little boy forgot his lines in a Sunday school program. His mother was in the front row to prompt him. She gestured & formed the words silently with her lips, but it did not help. Her son’s memory was blank.
Finally, she leaned forward & whispered the cue, "I am the light of the world." The child beamed & with great feeling & a loud clear voice said, "My mother is the light of the world."
A good Christian mother is a light in this world. She could most certainly be a light to her family & others if she lives by the light of Christ. I can’t think of anything better a mother could be to her family than to be a Christian mother! When mothers choose Christ they choose the best, & Christ can make them the best.
A Mother Is Born by Regina Phillips
My first child, a daughter, was born on July 27, 2000, & I found myself completely unprepared. I thought I was ready for her birth. I had read books & articles on childbirth & baby care; I had bought everything on my shopping checklist.
The nursery was ready for use, & my husband & I were anxiously awaiting her arrival. I was prepared for wakeful nights, endless diapers, crying (both hers & mine), & the feeling that I can’t get anything done.
What I wasn’t prepared for was the way the entire world looked different to me the minute she was born. I wasn’t prepared for the fact that the sheer weight of my love for her would reduce me to tears on a daily basis.
I didn’t know that I wouldn’t be able to get through my first lullaby to her because I couldn’t sing through my tears. I didn’t know that the world would suddenly become unbelievably beautiful & yet infinitely scarier. I didn’t know that it would seem like a new place had been created inside of me, just to hold this incredible love.
I had no idea what it would feel like when the nurse wheeled my daughter in to me saying, “She’s looking for you,” & the way the image of her deep-blue eyes looking right at me would be seared in my heart forever. I didn’t know that I could love someone so much it literally hurts, that a trip to Wal-Mart would make me feel like a protective mother bear guarding her cub.
I didn’t know that she would forever change the way my husband & I look at each other, or that the process of giving birth to her … would give me a whole new respect for my body. No one told me that I would no longer be able to watch the evening news because every story about child abuse would make me think of my daughter’s face.
Why didn’t anyone warn me about these things? I am overwhelmed by it all. Will I ever be able to leave her & think of anything but her, or see a crust in her eye or spot on her skin that doesn’t make me nervous? Will I ever be able to show her just how all-encompassing my love for her is? Will I ever be able to be the mother I so desperately want her to have?
I have heard it said, & I now know that it is true, that when a woman gives birth to her first child, there are two births. The first is the birth of the child. The second is the birth of the mother. Perhaps that is the birth that is impossible to prepare for. 2000 from Chicken Soup for the Mother & Daughter Soul.
Prov. 31:28 “Her children arise & call her blessed; her husband also, & he praises her.”
INVITATION
(This message is an amalgamation of several Mother’s Day sermons submitted to SermonCentral by Steve Shepherd and used with his permission.)
