What would life be like without mothers?
Well, imagine that your name is Isaac, and that your father is Abraham. Years ago, your father pulled up stakes and moved the family without knowing where he was going. He even brought your cousin, Lot. As Father sways along on his favourite camel, you have one comforting thought: It’s good that your mother, Sarah, is here. She doesn’t have the long-range vision of your father, but she’s happy to just go along with him, so you feel pretty secure. Maybe one day your father will find what he’s looking for, and the family will settle down.
Now think of yourself as young Jacob, following Isaac as he digs well after well, only to be chased off by nomads – open range people who don’t want wells because they don’t want settlers. (Reads like a script for a Western movie.) Your father digs wells but they fill them in. Maybe one day he’ll dig a well that they’ll let him keep. Your mother, Rebekah, looks after you really well, in spite of what she calls your “attitude” towards your brother, Esau.
We could go on. Samuel’s trust in his mother, Hannah, who visits her son once a year, bringing a new coat each time she comes. Sam’s Dad was a good man, but it was his mother who prayed and prayed until he was conceived. When he was born she gave him back to God, as she had promised. Young Sam soon begins hearing the voice of God, but little knows that he’ll one day be recognised as God’s prophet to the nation of Israel. Good thing mother prayed, and kept praying, don’t you think?
Mothers. They’re there when you need them. Wiping up dribble; cleaning off scribble. Changing your nappy; keeping you happy. Finding your dummy; filling your tummy. Driving you safely to school; watching you splash in the pool (and play the fool).
Fathers are great, too. But mother’s the one who really knows what you’re thinking, where you’re going, who you like, and what you want to do when you grow up. Father comes and goes, but Mother is there all the time. We honour mothers. God loves them, and loves answering their prayers. We love their cooking (especially that special recipe). Where would we be without them? Thank God for mothers!