~Dear Mother~
Good Morning, Sisters!
I pray you’re well this day and that your home is filled with the joy of
the LORD. My letter to you today is going to be for the purpose of
encouraging you and to, hopefully, inspire you to joyfully press on in
your role as a mother. Did you know that the LORD delights in you? He
does, and it’s this delighting, I believe, that He wants us as mothers
to have toward our husbands and children. The Word says, in Zephaniah
3.17: “The LORD thy God in the midst of thee
is mighty; he will save, he
will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy
over thee with singing.”
Well, Mother’s Day is coming up and for so
many it’s a very difficult day. Many sisters have mothers who’ve passed
on, mothers who, though still living, are not a part their lives, but
are, nonetheless, part of the fabric of their lives. Others have
strained relationships, perhaps distance or lifestyle separates them.
And then there are others who have good relationships but are in need of
encouragement to deepen or strengthen the bond they have. Another
difficult angle of Mother’s Day is the old pesky trap which ensnares us
all from time to time: expectation. Unmet expectation is often the
culprit behind the negative feelings associated with holidays or life
circumstances. We often “know” how a situation is going to turn out and
we practically: set it up to happen! We anticipate that *nothing*
is going to happen, or that things aren’t going to turn out “right” and
when nothing happens or things don’t “turn out,” then we have that old:
“I knew it!” syndrome wash over us and with it disappointment, again.
I used to have this feeling about Mother’s Day from time to time, and as
I look back now, O, how much I missed by *expecting* things to be “just
so” and when they weren’t, then I felt low. You see, I missed the
things that *were*
happening, I missed some “feeble” attempts at honouring mother. I see
now that *I* didn’t even
honour my mother or mother in law as I ought to have and yet, *I*
desired some lofty honour myself. But my words indicated otherwise. I
often have said to my family that they don’t need to do anything, that
they love me every day and so to do extraordinary things on *one*
day was not necessary. What I was doing was actually sending them mixed
signals. Sort of like holding out a hand, flat palmed: stop! and the
other, waving in, come on: give! My husband and children were then
confused and their attempts at sweetness were thwarted.
Now… for many years I have “participated”
in Mother’s Day and it’s been a delight to me---and for them, also. You
see, I decided to turn things around. At first, it was because I didn’t
want to be disappointed and I didn’t want to say or do anything to make
them feel awkward about it all. So, then, I began what’s now become a
tradition of writing to each of my children and my husband a card and
giving them each a gift on Mother’s Day. I attempt to convey to them,
their particular influence or importance to me as their mother. I seek
to affirm the qualities I see the LORD building in their lives and the
ways He’s using and blessing them---and what that means to me as their
mother. So, it’s become a day of thanks and delight and not of any
dread. I know they look forward to it, too---and you know what? I look
forward to it more each year! They do *so*
many dear things to bless me everyday that that day is really a day of
celebration for us all. They know I am *for*
them and that I so adore them, each one---and my great joy is that it’s
mutual. I believe it became this way when I began to change my
thinking---shifting it from myself to them and the blessing they are to
me---the children who, in part, made me what I am: a mother.
When I determine to set aside grief’s,
past disappointments, selfish ambitions, and seek to embrace the day, so
to speak, then the joy is full---because my joy is not dependant on my
situation: my joy is dependant on Jesus who is my Wellspring of joy! My
Rock and my Redeemer---and my children know, my husband knows and I live
*demonstrating* that *I*
know this. He is my hope of Glory.
That’s why it’s so very critical to keep
your eyes on Jesus: the Author and Finisher of your faith. HE will
never [NO, not ever!] leave you, nor forsake you. If, when, others
forsake you, count on this: He will never. So, you have a day that is
set aside and you have these expectations and all the possibilities in
the world that your hopes may be met or dashed---set your hope in God,
set your affections and all your expectations on things above.
Remember, the LORD will joy over you with singing. You can rest in the
knowledge that He will be found by you---you can count on this!
(Jeremiah 29.13-14)
I pray this Mother’s Day is a delightful
day for you. I pray it will hold significance for you as you seek to
honour your mother, if possible, and as you seek to be a mother worthy
of honour: a mother who delights in the LORD, showing love and
preference to her children and graciousness and honour to her husband, I
pray you’ll know you’re cherished. O, that we’d all be found faithful.
Happy Mother’s Day, dear sister!
With
love, pamela
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pamela spurling / The Welcome Home © 2004
AChristianHome.org
