Mothers in Their Day
Pr Edi Giudetti
13.05.2018
When we thing of Hannah in the book of 1 Samuel chapters one and two, we think of a mothers inmate desire for children, a desire that is entwined with the entire character of God and his original plan for the world.
What is intriguing of the account of Hannah in chapter two is knowing that this passage is a devotional prayer given to the Lord in gratitude but after she had given her child back to the Lord for his use and purpose.
Nothing was more important to Hannah than to have a Child and when she tearfully brought her petition to the Lord in Shilo, where her husband and she came to make a sacrifice to the Lord as they did each year, she promised the Lord that if he would grant this petition to her she would give her child back to God.
The placement of this devotional prayer is after she had weaned the Child God had given her, and so “lent him” to the Lord for as long as he lives.
What we see in Hannah is not only the natural and utmost desire of a wife to bear children, but most incredibly, a devotion for God that blossomed well beyond her desire to keep to herself that which she promised to God.
Consider for a moment what sort of desire it is to petition God, to give her that which she will give back to him.
Natural Desire, Vessels of Life
When God created man to replenish the Earth and fill it with people made in his own image, he put in those wonderful vessels of life the natural desire to bear children.
Its built into them as if it is a very part of them. We should expect this to be true for at least one of the parents if God’s desire was for the Earth to be filled with man created in his image for relationship with him.
The nature of God, the love of God, the care of God, the selflessness and sacrifice of God we expect to be displayed in the lives of those made in the Image of God.
Men and women are different in how they naturally display the things pertaining to the character of God. Men display some attributes of God naturally much better than women do, women display some attributes of God much better than men do, and motherhood especially highlights some particular attributes best.
And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
All mothers, from the first mother to the mothers of today, are vessels of life. Eve was called Eve because she was the mother of all living.
It’s incredible to think that every person on Earth came from the physical body of a mother. Mothers are the instruments of a miracle. Every time a child is conceived, a miracle has occurred.
From conception a mother’s body is given for the care of her child.
Safety,
nurture,
comfort,
and love
All from conception, these are dispensed by the mother for the benefit of the child.
Nothing can even begin to come close to the most incredible relationship of all, that begins from the moment of conception and will continue for the mother for the rest of her life.
Mothers are by far the most incredible of God’s creative work. Their very nature should demonstrate the nature of God toward mankind.
If you would like to see the love and self-sacrifice of God for mankind, you don’t need to go further than your mother.
15 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarahshallher namebe. 16 And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall bea motherof nations; kings of people shall be of her.
The nations of today sprung from a mother. Kings of yesteryear were carried in the womb of a mother.
Sarah, so old never having born children, desired children. Not once had she ever expected to be a mother of one let alone a mother of nations and kings.
And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him. 6 And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh,so thatall that hear will laugh with me. 7 And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age. (Gen 21:5-7)
Certain that Joy is the right expression for a mother who bares a child.
We recall that Hannah desired just such joy.
All she wanted was to bear a child and if God would grant her even this, she determined to lend him to the Lord for whatever gain could be had of him.
Elkanah her husband knew that Hannah desired a child more even than life, for she wept so often desiring God would grant her that petition.
Now every year they came to Shiloh to make a sacrifice to the Lord, Hannah had come with her husband and we take up the account in verse 9 of the first chapter of 1 Samuel.
So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD. And shewasin bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore. And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head. And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, Iama woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD. Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel granttheethy petition that thou hast asked of him. And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no moresad.
Nothing moved her more than her desire for a child. Weeping and praying in her heart that God would grant this petition.
But she was not alone in scripture for such desire;
And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, wherewasa great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. Andsoit was,thatas oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that thisisan holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; whatisto be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. And he said, What thenisto be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord,thouman of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.
We know her only by the name of the place Elisha passed through. She is only ever referred to as “The Shunammite”. We see also this strange woman’s most pressing desire is to be a mother.
We could speak of Rebekah, of Rachel, of Elizabeth, of many of the barren women in the Bible and in fact all wives naturally desiring the reward of Children given by the Lord
Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the wombis his reward.
We don’t see this innate desire for children in men, don’t get me wrong, men certainly would like to have children, but it is not the pressing heartfelt desire that affects their very being.
They don’t even understand how pressing the desire is for a woman.
Consider Elkanah’s own words to Hannah his wife;
why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons? (1 Sam 1:8)
Perhaps a good picture of men thinking of themselves more highly than they ought to think!
Instinctive Care, Sources of Nurture.
1 Samuel 2:18–21
But Samuel ministered before the LORD,beinga child, girded with a linen ephod. Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and broughtitto him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home. And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.
The instinctive care of a child is natural in a mother, they truly are Sources of Nurture. They differ so greatly from a father in this way.
I can’t help using a practical example of the difference between my wife and I and show how naturally a mother cares for her children in such an intimate way.
When my Son began to head off to work, Maria would set her alarm to get up at the same very early time as he. I was furious when I found out that she was getting up for him because I wanted him to sort his own stuff out and make sure he took responsibility etc..
But no, she just could not do it. She would get up just as early as Micheal, sometimes to make him lunch, sometimes to make him breakfast and some times just to keep him company. This went on for a couple of years till Micheal was comfortable without her…and then she continued with the Girls, first Saskia and then Natalie.
She is still up as early as they would get up, even if it’s just to boil the kettle and keep them company.
You will never know the natural love and care and nurture of a mother until you are one. Nothing explains it other than this is the nature of God in whom she is created to bear witness of his image.
There is an account in the Old Testament that bares further witness to this selfless love;
Then came there two women,that wereharlots, unto the king, and stood before him. And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and weweretogether;there wasno stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. And this woman’s child died in the night; because she overlaid it. And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear. And the other woman said, Nay; but the livingismy son, and the deadisthy son. And this said, No; but the deadisthy son, and the livingismy son. Thus they spake before the king. Then said the king, The one saith, Thisismy son that liveth, and thy sonisthe dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy sonisthe dead, and my sonisthe living. And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. Then spake the woman whose the living childwasunto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine,butdivideit. Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: sheisthe mother thereof. And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of Godwasin him, to do judgment.
Willing to live the rest of her life without him, willing to yearn in the hope of future recognition of her lost son, willing rather that he grew up in a home with another mother who cared less for his life than to give him away, this true mother would sacrifice all just to know he is alive.
Solomon had the wisdom to discern the Instinctive Care, the Source of Nurture of a TRUE MOTHER.
I can’t help thinking of all the mothers who suffered so much worry and grief when their sons went off to war. Most of us don’t have the worry today.
Can you imagine a time when communication came at the speed of only a gallop rather that the speed of light. And when there was not news it was considered good news, for the chance of a telegram or a letter may cause so much sorrow.
Can you imagine mothers separated from their children as a Jew In Nazi Germany. Imagine the fear and the tears not knowing if you will ever see each other again.
There are sorrows that go with such nurture, care and nurture that a mother has also has a risk of great pain as well as great joy.
Two examples;
Pain
A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish sonisthe heaviness of his mother.(Prov 10:1)
Joy
24 The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wisechildshall have joy of him. 25 Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice. (Pr 23:24-25)
Example of The Lord
As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And when ye seethis, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, andhisindignation toward his enemies.
15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.
This nature is built into a mother but it is ALSO the picture of God’s own Instinctive Care and the ultimate source of Nurture.
But there is a Contrary Example where such instinct is deprived from a mother in the Animal world. What is striking is that the text certainly indicates it as rare even there.
Gavest thouthe goodly wings unto the peacocks? or wings and feathers unto the ostrich? Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust, And forgetteth that the foot may crush them, or that the wild beast may break them. She is hardened against her young ones, as thoughthey werenot hers: her labour is in vain without fear; Because God hath deprived her of wisdom, neither hath he imparted to her understanding.
What is evident in this passage is that the instinct of mothers is given them by God
Faithful Influence Concern For The Soul
She was the 25th Child of 25 children, the daughter of a Puritan Non-Conformist Pastor in 1669 in England. She was poor.
In 1688 at the age of Nineteen, she was married to a 26-year-old man who became a clergy man in the Church of England.
She would have 19 of her own children and eventually suffer the death of eleven of them before her own death in 1742.
Her husband spent a great deal of time away from home and the family was very poor.
But she was a Godly and faithful woman, wife and mother who would influence at least two of her children to a greatness that we today can recognise.
Susannah Wesley had with her also a strict set of rules within the home to which all the children would follow and obey.
I’ll only go through a half-dozen and you can get an idea that she was a purposeful mother who took her work very seriously and faithfully to the Lord. Why?
Because she believed the Children where to be lent to the Lord in time to come and her role was to present them ready. How I wish we all would remember this truth as we bring up our own children.
“(1) Subdue self-will in a child and thus work together with God to save his soul.
(2) Teach him to pray as soon as he can speak.
(3) Give him nothing he cries for and only what is good for him if he asks for it politely.
(4) To prevent lying, punish no fault which is freely confessed, but never allow a rebellious, sinful act to go unnoticed.
(5) Commend and reward good behavior.
(6) Strictly observe all promises you have made to your child.”
She took care of their schooling also;
- Every child from the first day of their fifth birthday began Schooling in the home.
- By the end of that day each child was expected to know the alphabet. All but two of her children accomplished it.
- She set aside one hour each week to each child individually to speak of things concerning the Lord and their own well being.Before the end of their Schooling each of the children read and spoke both Latin and Greek.
As well as this She is written of to have spent an hour each day praying specifically for each of her children.
Susannah Wesley was the mother or John and Charles Wesley whose hymns we are so blessed to still sing today and whose work preaching the gospel to the world helped foster a time in our history known as the great Revival.
Paul speaks of the influence of Godly mothers;
When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
Incredible to see the stirring faith of a grandmother example in a mother and found to be in a Son who will now pastor many.
Who can count the value of the faithful influence of a Godly mother?
Let me ask you, what is the one thing you would love your child to remember of you at the end of your days?
- My mum worked hard at her job/career?
- My mum built-in me a love for Jesus and a desire to be faithful like she was.
Josef Gabor grew up in Czechoslovakia when it was dominated by communism, and religion was despised as weakness. His father taught communist doctrine classes. But Josef’s mother, who believed in Jesus Christ, took Josef and his brother with her to church.
They got up early each Sunday morning and took a 3-hour train ride to Prague. Then they walked to the church and sat through a 2 1/2-hour service. After eating lunch in a nearby park, they returned to church for another 2 1/2-hour meeting. Then they took the 3-hour ride home.
Today Josef Gabor is a missionary to his own people in Czechoslovakia. When he tells about going to church as a child, his eyes fill with tears of gratitude for a mother who cared enough about his spiritual welfare to help him come to know and serve Christ.
Daily Walk, July 11, 1993
In the Home and with the Children, never underestimate your value and worth in Christ.
But none of this comes of its own accord. As a mother you have one of the greatest responsibilities of all people, your influence on your children’s lives can not be measured in time or money, but in holy love and devotion.
God has already put in you the instinctive desires for the soul of your children, but in order for these to grow and bloom for the sake of you children, you must draw near to the Lord.
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. (Phil 4:13)
Dear Mothers, the value you are to your children simply cannot be measured, but you will need all the ability of the Lord to do your work well.
You do not live for yourself, but for Christ and being a mother has the most wonderful responsibilities and challenges that only the Lord can bless.
Do you instruct your children to read their Bible’s? Then you read twice as much.
Do you teach them to pray? Then you spend double the time with the Lord at least.
Are you teaching them diligence in their duties at home? What is their example?
Don’t believe the lies of this Satanically governed world, you will not find satisfactionin a career at the expense of motherhood. The Feminists have already proven to have lost that battle and many women have come to the conclusion far to late in life to know that have been hoodwinked.
God has created men and women differently, both have their purposed roles and joy WILL NOT be found in endeavours not aligned with the Lords purpose.
I believe a mothers role is to be a mother to her children full-time until at least they are done with their Schooling.
The biggest construction boom in Victoria today is Childcare centre, every one of them is a reminder that something is broken in the home of Australian families today.
We think we are paying the price today of bad behaviour in adolescents, we have not seen anything yet.
This is Gods creation and it works well when we work it his way and stop giving excuses for living it differently.
However, Mothers who keep their homes are blessed with abounding joy as their children grow.
Psalm 113:9 speaking of Gods works says;
9 He maketh the barren woman to keep house,and to bea joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD.
RESPECT and HONOUR
My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
This command is given to Children. Those whose honour and affection is toward their mothers will be abundantly blessed.
Now compare that to Proverbs 20:20
20 Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.
Recall that in the Bible the disobedience of rebellious children was rewarded by capital punishment. This is not a joke, God takes this very seriously.
Paul speaks of it aligned with those of a “reprobate mind” in Romans 1:29-32, take a look at what it is linked in with.
29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, 30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
Yet we have even the most wonderful example of Ruth in the Book of Ruth and how she honoured and respected her mother in law.
Having lost her husband and given opportunity to return to her own people, she chose to Cleave to Naomi, her mother in law, saying;
Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: 17 Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me
Long life is promised to those who honour their parents, but especially their mothers as they age.
22 Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.
Beloved, it’s not long that we are here in this world and there are none more deserving of the love and devotion of the children more than mothers.
I live with a wonderful mother, I get to see all she does and all she experiences, both her joys and her tears.
Good mothers don’t look for accolades, but there is one thing above anything else they really desires, and that is tofeel their children’s love for them.
NOT JUST ON MOTHERS DAY THOUGH.
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