Sermons for the Month
MOM
DATE: May 9, 1999
TEXT: Mother's Day
"To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN
A little girl was given a verse to memorize for a church program. It was a short verse. It was, "Jesus says, 'I am the light of the world.'" She worked on it every single day. She worked on it over and over again so that she'd have it just perfect. The big moment came and she stepped out onto the stage and she froze. The little girl completely forgot the verse. Mom was sitting right in the front row and so she was mouthing the verse, "I am the light of the world…I am the light of the world." Suddenly the little girl had a great big grin on her face and said, "My mommy is the light of the world."
Moms and grandmas, sisters and aunts, you are the light of the world. Today we want to take just a few moments to honor the moms who are here today. We are going to use the letters MOM and talk a little about the difference that moms make in our lives.
I am going to begin with the letter M and talk about how moms are our Mothers. But before we talk about, let's pray together.
God we thank you today for moms and grandmas, for sisters and aunts and nieces and aunts, for all the women in our lives who make such a difference--who've been a light for us. As we talk today about moms and about women, God we pray that we will come to a deeper understanding of how special they are to us and to you and how much you love and value each one of us. We ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN
Mom was intent on teaching her son how to take care of himself. So one day when he walked into the house with a tear in his brand new pants she said, "Young man, you take those pants of right now, get a needle and thread and sew up that hole." A few minutes later she walked back into the room to see how he was doing and she noticed the pants draped over a chair, the hole still in them and the door to the basement, which was normally shut, was now open! So she went to the top of the stairs and yelled down, "Are you running around down there without your pants on?" A startled voice came back and said, "No ma'am. I'm just down here reading your gas meter."
Well, even though it's not always easy, one of the great callings moms have is to mentor their children; to, with God's help, mold and shape them into all God wants them to be. Now throughout the ages, moms have been appreciated for their mentoring ability. As one little saying puts it, "An ounce of mom is worth a pound of clergy." Moms are mentors.
Throughout the years there have been a lot of well-known people who have credited their mom for their success in life. For example, Thomas Edison writes this little tribute to his mother: "I did not have my mother long. But she cast over me an influence, which has lasted all my life. The good effects of early training I can never lose. If it had not been for her appreciation and faith in me at a critical time in my experience, I should never likely have become an inventor. I was always a careless boy and with a mother of different mental caliber I should have turned out badly. But her firmness, her sweetness, her goodness were potent powers to keep me on the right path. My mother was the making of me. The memory of her will always be a blessing."
Charles Elliot who was the president of Harvard University also credits his mom with his success. He was born with a large birthmark on his cheek. As he grew it gave him a lot of embarrassment and internal shame. And so as a teenager he went to the doctor to see if anything could be done. The surgeon that examined him said, "There is nothing we can do to cover-up or remove that birthmark. You will have to learn to live with it." It was the darkest day of his life. His mom could see that he was depressed. And so one day she gave him a word of advice that changed him forever. She said, "Son, it is not possible for you to remove that hardship. But it is possible for you, with God's help, to grow a soul and a mind so big that people will forget to notice your face." You see, it was her words of wisdom, her teaching and nurturing, the mentoring of her son that helped him be all that God wanted him to be.
Four pastors were talking about their favorite translation of the Bible. The first pastor said that he liked the King James Version best because the King's English was so beautiful. The second pastor said that she enjoyed the New American Standard Version best because the translation was so accurate. The third said that he like the New Contemporary Version because the English was so readable. The fourth pastor said that he like his mom's translation the best. The other pastors looked at him and said, "We didn't know that she authored her own translation." He said, "Yes, she did. Every day she translated the Bible into her life."
Moms are mentors. Through their words of wisdom, their words of love and discipline, through their example and through their teachings they inspire us to be all that God wants us to be. As one proverb puts it, "Adults are what their mothers' make them." Great moms build great people.
O is for Optimistic faith. One Mother's Day after dinner mom was in the kitchen doing dishes and her teenage daughter walked into the room, horrified to see her mom standing at the kitchen sink. She said, "Oh mom, you shouldn't be doing dishes on Mother's Day!" Startled by her daughter's apparent kindness and willingness to help, she began to take off her apron to hand it to her daughter when her daughter added, "Those dishes will keep until tomorrow!"
Mom, has there been a time in your mothering where you wondered, "Am I getting through? Am I making a difference? With all this energy and effort, am I doing anything right?" It's within these times of questioning that God offers us sustaining support.
What sustains you when you've changed that one-thousandth diaper? What sustains you when you've butted heads with that obstinate, strong-willed teenager? When you've watched your adult child suffer through a divorce? What sustains you? God offers you today the gift of optimistic faith.
Optimistic faith isn't blind faith. It's not closing our eyes to the reality around us…to the pain of the problems. Optimistic faith is seeing the real situation, but seeing it through God's eyes.
The Bible talks about this kind of faith in Hebrews, chapter 11. It says, "This faith is the firm foundation under everything, that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see."
God saw chaos, but not just chaos. Then God spoke life into this world--he spoke beauty and order. God sees our everyday trials and tribulations. But God doesn't just see them. God sees promise and hope in the midst of our problems.
Sarah saw her own barrenness. She saw her age growing. But she also saw the promise of God--that God had promised her a child. She believed God. Through that faith she gave birth to a child. Optimistic faith sees the reality but also the hopeful future. Optimistic faith ultimately isn't faith in yourself, it's not faith in your children...it's faith in Jesus Christ. The one who promises to never leave you or forsake you. The one who promises to forgive you when you make mistakes with your children. The one who promises to be with you forever and be your friend. The one who promises those same things for your children.
And so we can look at the problems and the pressures with optimistic eyes.
A true story about another great inventor who discovered some incredible medical breakthroughs. A reporter once asked him, what his secret was for being so much more creative than his peers. He responded, "It all started when I was a little boy. I was taking some milk out of the refrigerator and I accidentally dropped the milk bottle. The bottle didn't break but milk spilled all over the kitchen floor. My mom walked into the kitchen and instead of scolding and punishing me she said, 'Wow! That's the greatest milk spill I've ever seen. As long as it's there, son, would you like to play in if for a minute?' Of course I did! After I swam in it awhile she said, 'Now after we've made a mess we must clean it up. Would you like to use a sponge, a mop or a towel?' I choose a towel. Then she said, 'This is an example of a failed experiment of two little hands trying to hold a milk bottle.' So I practiced with my little hands and discovered that if I put them around the neck of the bottle I could carry it without dropping it. At that moment I realized that I need not fear mistakes. My mistake was an opportunity to learn more. And that's exactly what experiments are all about."
That mother saw the situation through optimistic faith. She saw the spilled milk but she saw the possibilities in the problem as well.
I am grateful for my Mom. She never let me swim in milk, but she did give me some great gifts. She prayed for me. We prayed at mealtime. We prayed at bedtime. But most importantly she prayed for me when I wasn't looking, because she believed that Jesus Christ was at work in my life. She lived her faith by serving and encouraging me, by working in the community, visiting the sick. I saw that faith was real and alive for her, and it could be real and alive for me.
Optimistic faith, friends, is a gift from God to you. And as you live in that optimistic faith it will spill over and give faith and life to your children.
Mom a mentor, one of optimistic faith, and finally a molder of dreams.
Dreams come in sizes too big so children can grow into them. When a child is born a dream comes true for God. A star is born! Maybe moms, you've sung the song, "Twinkle, Twinkle little Star." As you think about that twinkle, think how wonderful it is that god created a world with an optical window in an atmosphere that would enable us to see the beautiful stars that come out at night.
God wants to create that optical window so that we can see God's dream for each and every child. I'd like to take the word TWINKLE and outline seven steps to molding a dream.
The first step is Test all possibilities. Do not put a cap on a child's potential. Test it out by going to a museum. Maybe by going to a horse show. Going to a concert or an athletic contest. Doing some traveling. Going on nature walks--test out unlimited possibilities.
The W in twinkle is to Work on their God-given gifts. Some children early on demonstrate an academic potential or an athletic prowess. Maybe they have some musical gifts. Whatever it might be--work on God's design. "Train up a child in the way they should go." In other words training a child in their 'bent'--the way God made them.
The I in twinkle is to Invest time in our children. When we talk about love, the best way to spell love is T-I-M-E. Taking time to be there--putting our children at the top of our priority--investing in them. N represents Nurturing their self-worth and self-esteem. Failure describes an event, never a child. We need to believe in our children because they do not believe in themselves.
One of God's easiest jobs (don't worry moms about children getting a big head) is keeping us humble. God's toughest job is to make us believe we are valuable--to make us believe we are worth something. The K is for Keeping balance--keeping a child balanced mentally, emotionally and spiritually. My mom would say almost daily, "All things in moderation." We need to help our children keep things in balance.
The L represents Leading the way. A child would rather see a sermon than hear one any day. Children would rather have you walk with them than merely point the way. For the eye is a more ready pupil than the ear. Good advice is always confusing. But example is very clear.
The E represents Encouragement. Encourage. Encourage. Encourage…and keep on encouraging. As children live out their dreams there are going to be times of discouragement and we need to be there as parents, as friends, and as family to encourage.
When the teacher of the year, Guy Doud, many years ago was at the White House, he was handed a little card from then-President Ronald Reagan. Someone has taken the writings on that card and written a new version for mom's today. As I wrap up I'd like to share it with you.
Mother, you are the unsung hero of your children's dreams. You are the spark that sets their heart aflame. You are the guardian of a million dreams. Your every smile can heal or pierce a heart. Your patient words, your touch, make you the champions of hope. Fill their souls with dreams to make those dreams come true. MOM
Thanks be to God for moms!
AMEN