By Bonita Hele

Dear Jesus, bless the mothers who sat up again last night, soothing their crying, colicky babies.

Bless the mothers who read the same favorite bedtime story night after night, even though they could recite it in their sleep.

Bless the mothers who keep a treasured collection of their children’s artwork, from the first scribble to the latest masterpiece.

Bless the mothers who help support their families, even when it means going to work with spit-up on their blouses, diapers in their purses, and teething rings on their key chains.

Bless the mothers who cheer the child who scored the winning goal, and bless the mothers who cheer on the child who has never scored a goal.

Bless the mothers who care for their sick children, treasuring the extra time together rather than begrudging the extra work.

Bless the mothers who daily teach their children the ways of love, peace, forgiveness, tolerance, and humility by their example.

Bless the mothers who teach their children to fold their hands in prayer, even before they can say a word.

Bless the mothers who acknowledge their mistakes and ask You to make up for their lacks.

Bless the mothers who never tire of praying for their children.

Bless the mothers who aren’t a picture of perfection but a personification of love.

Thank You, Lord, for mothers—old pro, rookie, or soon-to-be, single or married, rich or poor, mothers of their own children or mothers to the motherless—because without them we would not know that most beautiful thing, a mother’s love.

The young Mother set her foot on the path of life.

“Is the way long?” she asked.

And her Guide said” “Yes. And the way is hard. And you will be old before you reach the end of it. But the end will be better than the beginning.”

But the young Mother was happy, and she would not believe that anything could be better than these years. So she played with her children, and gathered flowers for them along the way, and bathed with them in the clear streams; and the sun shone on them and life was good, and the young Mother cried, “Nothing will ever be lovelier than this.”

The night came, and storm, and the path was dark, and the children shook with fear and cold, and the Mother drew them close and covered them with her mantle, and the children said, “Oh, Mother, we are not afraid, for you are near, and no harm can come,” and the Mother said, “This is better than the brightness of day, for I have taught my children courage.”

And the morning came, and there was a hill ahead, and the children climbed and grew weary, and the Mother was weary, but at all times she said to the children, “A little patience and we are there.” So the children climbed and when they reached the top, they said, “We could not have done it without you, Mother.” And the Mother, when she lay down that night, looked at the stars and said: “This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned fortitude in the face of hardness. Yesterday I gave them courage. Today I have given them strength.”

And the next day came strange clouds which darkened the earth—clouds of war and hate and evil, and the children groped and stumbled, and the Mother said: “Look up. Lift your eyes to the Light.” And the children looked and saw above the clouds an everlasting Glory, and it guided them and brought them beyond the darkness. And that night the Mother said, “This is the best day of all, for I have shown my children God.”

And the days went on, and the weeks and the months and the years; and the Mother grew old, and she was little and bent. But her children were tall and strong, and walked with courage. And when the way was hard, they helped their Mother, and when the way was rough, they lifted her, for she was as light as a feather; and at last they came to a hill, and beyond the hill they could see a shining road and a golden gate flung wide.

And the Mother said: “I have reached the end of my journey. And now I know that the end is better than the beginning, for my children can walk alone, and their children after them.”

And the children said: “You will always walk with us, Mother, even when you have gone through the gates.”

And they stood and watched her as she went on alone, and the gates closed after her. And they said: “We cannot see her, but she is with us still. A Mother like ours is more than a memory. She is a living presence.”




© The Family International.

Maria Fontaine

As Christian mothers, we strive to be good examples of Jesus to our children. We want to be sure they are cared for in all areas of life—that they’re educated well, that their health needs are provided for, that they learn good social skills, and that they are taught good values and to be kind, loving, and giving to others. We want to be sure they are raised with strong Christian faith and conviction and principles.

I thought that the following example of a godly mother from history, Susanna Wesley, would be encouraging for all you Christian mothers. Susanna Wesley is best known as the mother of the founders of Methodism, Charles and John Wesley. From Methodism sprang a number of today's Protestant denominations. Charles and John were tireless in their efforts to preach the Gospel, which they attributed to the faith instilled in them by their mother. They were instrumental in triggering a major time of revival and missionary work in England in the 1600s that spread to many parts of the world.

Though Susanna Wesley is most famous for what Charles and John accomplished, the greatest honor God affords her is for her great determination and faithfulness to raise all her children in the ways of the Lord. She never wavered in this resolve, even though adversity constantly threatened to overwhelm her.

The specifics of your struggles, heartbreaks and battles may be quite different from what Susanna Wesley faced. But whatever the day or difficulty, it’s always a challenge to endure and stay faithful in your fight to raise your family to the best of your ability. Godly motherhood is always demanding.

• Finances always a problem. She described her encounters with debt collectors as “living with the wolf at the door.”
  
• Bore nineteen children. (How difficult is that!)
  
• Nine of the children died, some in very tragic circumstances.
  
• House burned down twice. Barn collapsed.
  
• Family forced to be separated from each other after their home was destroyed.
  
• Health failed; often bedridden and needing to manage her household from bed.
  
• Struggled with doubt throughout her life.
  
• Marital difficulties, with lots of arguments and disagreements. Her husband’s nature and her own strong personality resulted in many arguments.
  
• Brother disappeared mysteriously and was never heard from again.
  
• After an accident, her husband remained weak and sickly for the rest of his life.
  
• It seems that some of her children were very wayward, resulting in many heartbreaks.
  
• She saw herself as not having any great abilities or as having accomplished anything great. She said, “I am content to fill a little space if God be glorified.” 
  

Yet her overwhelming desire was that the little flock that she had borne would grow to know and love Jesus and do things for God. She schooled all her children, and each day before their academic studies began, an hour was spent in Scripture reading and prayer and singing of Psalms.

Nothing could deter Susanna from putting their spiritual welfare first and foremost. In spite of her not being able to provide them with all the material things that she would have liked, she gave them the most important thing. Many times all she could do was cling to God’s promises and refuse to let circumstances stop her in the task that the Lord had given her. In spite of the setbacks, defeats, heartbreaks, loss, and spiritual and physical battles, her faith and love for the Lord and her children brought her through it all.

Eventually, in her later years, she saw some of the fruits of her faithfulness, and I’m sure much more when she arrived in her heavenly home, as you will as well, if you don’t see them in this life. Nothing you give for your children will be wasted.

Maria Fontaine


Motherhood may have its ups and downs, but when we stop to focus on what is truly great, truly important, truly wonderful in this world, one thing that most people will always have at or near the top of their list is the wonder of mothers.

How do mothers do it? What is the secret of that seemingly boundless patience, endurance, and love that seems to keep reviving again and again in spite of anything that life throws at it?

Here are some of my thoughts about mothers—things that mothers do, or are, that make them so special.

• What is given to a child from a mother’s heart, which has been broken and crushed and remade and filled to overflowing many times, is the confidence that, no matter what, they are valued and loved and there is always hope.


• Every mother who has given from her heart to her children has placed a part of herself—her life, her compassion, her hope—into their hearts and spirits through her love and patience and caring.


•  If you’re feeling that your own faults and failings and flaws have disadvantaged your children, even though you have loved them and given them what you could, you might want to reflect on how even God’s great, perfect, flawless love for all humankind doesn’t guarantee that we will turn out perfect and without mistakes, failings, or problems. No matter how great a job you do as a mother, it will not guarantee that those you pour your life into will turn out the way you would like them to. But one thing is certain: your loving hand in their lives—through example, through instruction, through care, and through prayer—always makes a difference for good.


• What if you never personally bore a child? You partake of motherhood if you have cared for a child who needed you. You’ve imprinted a touch of yourself on that life.  


• Mothers are God’s great gift to each child and to this world. 


• It costs to be a mother. It costs in loss of freedom to do what you feel like doing. It costs in putting your children ahead of yourself day in and day out. As one writer expressed it when writing about his mother: “I see sacrifices made for me and dreams imprisoned that mine might be free.” 

          Motherhood costs in carrying not only your own pain and sorrow, but also the pain           
          and sorrow of those in your care. It costs in battling their fears on top of your own and 
          worrying as your children fall again and again. It costs in trying to muster a little more 
          strength when yours is gone, yet more is needed to lift those who are looking to you 
          for strength. It costs when hope seems gone, yet you know that you cannot let go for 
          their sakes, and you hope against hope until you see them back on their feet.

• A mother’s love is so supernatural that it can’t be explained. As one poet put it:

          It is far beyond defining,
          It defies all explanation;
          And it still remains a secret
          Like the mysteries of creation.

          A many-splendored miracle
          Man cannot understand,
          And another wondrous evidence
          Of God’s tender guiding hand. 

• What are some of our personal qualities and attributes that influence our children in positive ways?
  

a. Unconditional love toward them and others.

b. Balancing moral standards with compassion and mercy that teaches them forgiveness and tolerance, coupled with a conviction for what is true and right.

c. Prayer, faith, and trust as an integral part of our relationship with our children.

d. The example of trust and faith that we show in how we react to the heartaches that come into our life and into the lives of others.

e. The resilience we show when we make mistakes or fail, and the seeking of ways to grow from the experience, so that our children, when they make mistakes, can discover the purpose of them without condemnation.

By Curtis Peter Van Gorder

Mothers give so much. Their entire lives are a gift of love to their families. We journey far from our beginnings, and then something tugs at our heartstrings and draws us home to rediscover who we are and where we came from.

I sat down with my mother a few months before she passed away and asked her some questions about her life. If you haven’t ever done that, I suggest you do. It’s sure to help you appreciate your mother even more.

Mom told me much about her life and dreams, both fulfilled and unfulfilled.

“Do you have any regrets?” I asked her. “What would you major on if you could live your life again?”

She answered by showing me something she had written in her journal: If I could, I would find more country lanes to walk, bake more cookies, plant more spring bulbs, swim at dusk, walk in the rain, dance under the stars, walk the Great Wall, wade along sandy shores, pick up sea shells and glass, glide through fjords in northern lands, sing country ballads, read more books, erase dismal thoughts, dream up a fantasy.

“Is there any message that you would like to pass on to your children and grandchildren?” was my next question.

Again she flipped through her journal and found the answer already written there: Stop waiting to live until your car is paid off, until you get a new home, until your kids are grown, until you can go back to school, until you finish this or that, until you lose ten pounds.

Flipping a few more pages she came to this entry: Pray for what you wish. God loves to answer because answered prayer deepens faith and adds glory to His name.

And again: Savor the moment. Savor your walking and talking with friends, the smiles of little children. Savor the dazzling light of morning that holds the multicolored way. Savor God’s great earth, rolling hills, the birds, the blooms, the diamond dewdrops glittering on a crab apple tree—all His wonders from His hand.
                                                                          

To children, no one in the whole world is more beautiful than their own loving mothers. Young children don’t think of their mothers in terms of fashion sense, great taste in jewelry, or perfect hair and nails. They also don’t notice stretch marks or gray hairs. Their little minds are oblivious to those things that tend to skew adults’ perceptions and expectations regarding beauty, so they’re actually better judges of what makes a woman truly beautiful.

Where do children find beauty?—In the eyes that convey pride in their achievements, in the lips that encourage and instruct, in the kisses that make small hurts bearable, in the soothing voice that puts them back to sleep after a bad dream, in the wrap-around love of a soft warm hug.

Where does such beauty come from?—With motherhood comes self-sacrifice, but from self-sacrifice comes humility, from humility comes grace, and from grace comes true beauty. A mother embodies life, love, and purity in the giving of herself to her children, and in these she is a reflection of God’s love for His children. This is why I believe that nothing makes a woman more beautiful than motherhood. -- Saskia Smith

The Hand that Rocks the Cradle Rules the World 

What an important job a mother has! The mothers of the next generation are the ones who are molding the future. Motherhood is just about the greatest calling in the world. Of course, taking care of a baby may not always seem very important, but don’t ever minimize it. Who knows what an impact that child may have on the lives of many others one day.

The thing that makes a mother so wonderful is her self-sacrificial spirit that is willing to sacrifice her time and strength and even her own health, if necessary, for the sake of that child. Any woman can have a baby, but it takes a real mother to learn how to “train up a child in the way he should go” (Proverbs 22:6). —D.B. Berg

I’m your Shepherd

It takes a lot of love and unselfishness to raise a child, and it takes even more when you’re doing it as a single parent. Some days you feel like it’s too much-that you can’t be both mother and father to your child-yet you keep going. I’m proud of you for that.

One day you’re going to be so happy that you didn’t give up, but kept loving and teaching your child the best you could. When your daughter grows up and looks back and remembers all the love and care you gave her, she will be so thankful and proud to have a mother like you.

I also know it’s tough to be the primary source of support for your family. I want to help and take care of you. Have you heard the Psalm “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”? I don’t want you to lack anything you need. If you pray and ask Me for help, I will show you what to do to take care of the bills, and I will make sure that you and your child are provided for.

Someone to lean on

Children are a blessing from Me. Each of them is a special touch of My love, and they are never a mistake. I create them with love, and then entrust them to parents like you, to be loved and cared for.

You’ve given so much of yourself in order to take care of your children, and you continue to give. I want you to know that I see and I appreciate every bit of that. I also want you to know that I’m always here to help you.

You often don’t feel capable as a parent, but if you look to Me, I will make it easier. It’s a huge job, especially when you’re doing it on your own, but I will help you through the difficult times. I will give you all the love and patience you need. I will give you all the wisdom and understanding you need. I will be your other half, the one you can lean on. I will help you make the tough decisions.

I want to be a part of your family. I want to be the head of your household. You don’t have to raise your family alone. I am here to help you.

The finest gift you can give anyone is encouragement. Yet, almost no one gets the encouragement they need to grow to their full potential. If everyone received the encouragement they need to grow, the genius in most everyone would blossom and the world would produce abundance beyond our wildest dreams.--Sidney Madwed

                                                                                 *

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.--Dr. Leo Buscaglia

                                                                                 *

Charles Schwab, the successful businessman, said, "I have yet to find the man, however exalted his station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than under a spirit of criticism."

Everyone wants and needs to be affirmed for his accomplishments. A little boy playing darts with his father said, "Let's play darts. I'll throw and you say 'Wonderful!'" That's what the encouraging person does for others.

We tend to become what the most important person in our life thinks we will become. Think the best, believe the best, and express the best in your children.  Your affirmation will not only make you more attractive to them, but you will help play an important part in their personal development.

—John C. Maxwell (excerpted from the bookBe a People Person: Effective Leadership Through Effective Relationships)

                                                                                *

The movie "Stand and Deliver," tells the true story of Jaime Escalante, an immigrant from Bolivia who taught at Garfield High School in inner-city Los Angeles. He accomplished remarkable results with students known to be especially difficult to teach.

One story not depicted in the movie was the one about "the other Johnny." Escalante had two students named Johnny in his class. One was a straight A+ student; the other was an F+ student. The A+ student was easy to get along with, cooperated with teachers, worked hard, and was popular with his peers. The F+ Johnny was sullen, angry, uncooperative, disruptive, and in general was not popular with anyone.

One evening at a PTA meeting, an excited mother approached Escalante and asked, "How is my Johnny doing?" Escalante figured that the F+ Johnny's mother would not be asking such a question, so he described in glowing terms the A+ Johnny, saying he was a wonderful student, popular with his class, cooperative and a hard worker, and would undoubtedly go far in life. The next morning, Johnny—the F+ one—approached Escalante and said, "I really appreciate what you said to my mother about me, and I just want you to know that I'm going to work real hard to make what you said the truth." By the end of that grade period, he was a C- student, and by the end of the school year, he was on the honor roll.

If we treat our children as if they were "the other Johnny," chances are dramatically better that they will, in fact, improve their performance. Someone rightly said that more people have been encouraged to succeed than have been nagged to succeed. This example makes us wonder what would happen to all the "other Johnnies" of the world if someone said something really nice about them. —Zig Ziglar

Tina Kapp

Some of my earliest memories are of riding on the back of a motorcycle, behind my mom. And it wasn't just for a spin around the block. We were a missionary family and lived in countries where motorcycles were often the most practical or affordable means of transportation. (I grew up in Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Macau, and Singapore.)

But that wasn't the only unusual or outstanding thing about Mom. She always made a point to learn and fit into the local culture as much as she could, and she loved to communicate with people in their own language. She was also an expert at organizing fun, educational outings for us kids, and encouraged us to try local foods, sports, and ways of doing things.

I moved to Uganda as a young adult, and after a while Mom joined me. It was wonderful to see how quickly and well she adapted to Africa after having lived in Japan for many years. As always, she was eager to learn new things, studying various local dialects and learning all she could about the Ugandan culture. It wasn't long before she was greeting sellers at the street market in their own vernaculars. She got to know all of our Ugandan neighbors, right down to details of their children's education and interests, and she never hesitated to help a friend or stranger in need. She also hadn't lost her fun-loving, slightly reckless side. On one of her days off, she could be found riding her dirt bike to Lake Victoria, renting motorbikes for others of us to learn to ride, or her favorite—kayaking down the Nile.

The best moms, I've found, aren't necessarily perfect cooks or housekeepers, but they love their children completely and in their own way. They also set an example by living what they teach, and aren't afraid to let their children try new things and be themselves. And while they're at it, they enjoy life to the full.

Powerpoint dedicated to all mothers. Happy Mother's Day!