Thoughts on Mother’s Day

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Yesterday was one of the most celebrated days of the year: Mother’s Day. All across our country, people celebrated the one person who has been there with them from the very beginning. We salute you moms. 

As a pastor of a local church, I know that Mother’s Day is one of the biggest days of the year. As far as church attendance goes, Mother’s Day is usually in the top three of the year with Christmas and Easter. (If Momma ain’t happy, ain’t no one happy!)

As we are on the other side of this “big day,” I thought that I would share some thoughts that I had about Mother’s Day. 

  • Moms are definitely worth honoring. I have such a great respect and admiration for moms out there. I know that I had a great mom growing up. I know that my wife is the greatest mom on the planet. The “job” that moms do is one that not just anyone can do. It calls for so much of their time, energy, and life. 
  • Mother’s Day may be missing the point. I enjoy a good celebration. I believe that there is nothing wrong with celebrating moms. I just think that it shouldn’t be done one day out of the year. I fear that there are some who see this day as another check on their list – “treated mom today, I’m good for another year.” The Bible tells us that we should honor our parents at all times (Exodus 20:12; Ephesians 6:2-3). To set aside one day and honor mom is just lacking on so many levels. 
  • Mother’s Day can be a difficult day. While many enjoy Mother’s Day and all that goes with it, there are many who dread this day. For those who did not have a loving mother, it is hard to get excited about this day. Thoughts of abandonment and mistreatment arise and make this a tough day to get through. For those who have had to walk the painful journey of losing a mother to death, it can be tough. I lost my mother a couple of years ago. This day makes me think about not only the good times I had with her but those days around when I had to say “good-bye.” For those who have had to walk the painful path of losing a child/miscarriage, Mother’s Day is extremely difficult. All those memories and “what ifs” flood one’s heart like few other times. 
  • You don’t have to give birth to be celebrated on Mother’s Day. While I had a great mom, there have been a few people that God has placed in my life that have also played that role to a degree. There are many who are not able to have children of their own, and they feel left out on Mother’s Day. I would like to say to all those ladies out there who are playing the mom role in a child’s life even though it is not biologically yours, THANK YOU!!! You will never know the impact that it makes. Every child needs a mom, and there are many who are desperately looking for that need to be filled in their life. 

I am so thankful to God for the mother that He allowed me to have for so long here on this earth. I am also so thankful for the mother that God has blessed my children with (as I said earlier, she’s the best). I hope that you honored the ladies in your life who play this vital role well. Just don’t let it be a one day out of the year thing. 

What were some of your thoughts coming off of Mother’s Day?

Don’t Get Too Busy

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This morning was a first for me.  The morning started out pretty much like any other morning.  There was the getting breakfast together, helping get the kids ready for the day and then finally getting myself ready.  I was running through things in my mind that I would like to get done today in the office – sermons for Wednesday and Sunday, reading that I would like to get done, planning, etc.

As I was getting my things together to head out the door, it happened.  I don’t know where it came from, but it hit hard.  We have never seen this reaction before.  Our middle son, Sam, bust out into tears and said that he wanted to stay with Daddy.  I was blindsided.

Normally, our boys flock to the mother for EVERYTHING.  They are true-blue Momma-boys.  I’m okay with that.  I was a Momma-boy growing up as well.  For some reason today, Sam wanted his Daddy.  I would be lying if I said that there was not a feeling of pride swelling up inside of me.

I made the decision to give this thing a try.  There is nothing for my 4-year-old son to do in my office other than color on some paper and play in the floor in the corner.  I told my wife something along the lines of, “let’s see what happens.”  We got him ready and a couple of toys, and it was off to the office with Daddy.  Surprisingly, he did pretty good – other than lock himself in the bathroom.

We went home for lunch and I told my son that he would have to stay at the house with Mommy.  He was fine with that.  He had some one-on-one “Daddy time,” and he was happy with that.

I was reminded during the time together and over lunch that these kiddos are not going to be here in our house very long.  There is a small window of their life that we as their parents have to make an impact.  Ministry is tough work.  There is a lot of preparation, planning, and praying that must be done.  But, as I was reminded of today, it should never come at the expense of your family.

Storytelling

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Who doesn’t like a good story?  I don’t know of many people who do not like to hear one tell a good gripping story.  I have had the privilege of sitting at the feet of some good storytelling people.  Some were relatives that just brighten up the times together with a good story.  Some were friends who would tell about past adventures.

A good story is priceless.

For some people, storytelling is indeed priceless.  For some people in our world, storytelling might be the only way that they get to encounter the life-changing Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Last night, my wife did a great job of sharing with our church family about mission work done in the Ivory Coast through some of our IMB missionaries.  One of the major ways that the Gospel is shared in the Ivory Coast is through storytelling the Bible.  This is done primarily because the literacy rate is sadly very low.  A great video that tells a little about the work in the Ivory Coast can be seen here.

This got me to thinking…

If we had to share the truths of the Bible with another person in the form of storying, could we?

In our country, it is not uncommon for there to be a copy of the Bible in the home, workplace, hotel rooms, library, or other places we find ourselves frequently.  You can even find the Bible at Walmart!  Even though we have an abundance of Bibles at our fingertips, I am concerned that we don’t know what the story of the Bible really is.

I would encourage you to take that number one best-seller that may be on a shelf close by and take time to learn the story of the Bible.  Don’t just read and listen to the many stories, but take time to see the overall story that goes throughout Scripture.  Then let’s take the time to share that story with others around us.