Yesterday – 14th May, we celebrated Mothers’ Day. Is being a mother a challenge? As a great grandmother I can say yes! We have surely all wished for eyes in the back of our heads at some stage. Getting the balance between patience and discipline, learning to discern the difference between pushing boundaries and genuinely exploring new things largely falls on a mother’s shoulders. We have to keep abreast with what is taught in school, particularly with the spiritual climate. From what I understand, there are some abominations about gender being pushed on to children, though not in South Africa as yet. All this takes patience and persistence.
“The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world,” was originally a poem by W R Wallace. Although largely forgotten, it has now become a commonly quoted proverb.
Throughout the books of Kings and Chronicles in the Bible, the mothers of the kings of Israel and Judah are often mentioned. Obviously the writers of these books felt it was important to provide this information, suggesting that mothers really matter.
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul reminds him of the “sincere faith which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5).”
I have fond memories of my own mother, whose example I tried to follow. She was a great comfort to me during my teenage years, always reassuring me gently, but at the same time, not taking any nonsense.
Mothers’ Day is actually every day of the year. God is always there to guide us by his Spirit.
Indeed, the role a mother plays in raising a nation cannot be overstated. Thank you for the honour you bestow on us as mothers.
Happy mother’s day, belatedly!