Thanks, Mom! -- Peace Church, Loyal, Oklahoma USA

Thanks, Mom!

Listen, my son, and be wise, and keep your heart on the right path. Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding.

The father of a righteous man has great joy; he who has a wise son delights in him. May your father and mother be glad; may she who gave you birth rejoice! Proverbs 23:19-25

Before we get into the serious part of my message, let’s take a short light-hearted look at motherhood:

No one deserves a special day all to herself more than today's Mom. A cartoon showed a psychologist talking to his patient: "Let's see," he said, "You spend 50 percent of your energy on your job, 50 percent on your husband and 50 percent on your children. I think I see your problem." -Unknown

"I’d like to be the ideal mother, but I’m too busy raising my kids." -Unknown

The mother of three notoriously unruly youngsters was asked whether or not she'd have children if she had it to do over again. "Yes," she replied, "but not the same ones!" -David Finkelstein

1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby’s bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.

1st baby: You change your baby’s diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every 2 to 3 hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.

"All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother." -Abraham Lincoln

"I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life." -Abraham Lincoln

"My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her." -George Washington

"An ounce of mother is worth a ton of priest." -Spanish proverb

"The mother’s heart is the child’s schoolroom." -Henry Ward Beecher

"In all my efforts to learn to read, my mother shared fully my ambition and sympathized with me and aided me in every way she could. If I have done anything in life worth attention, I feel sure that I inherited the disposition from my mother." -Booker T. Washington

"The future destiny of a child is always the work of the mother." -Napoleon Bonaparte

When Robert Ingersoll, the notorious skeptic, was in his heyday, two college students went to hear him lecture. As they walked down the street after the lecture, one said to the other, "Well, I guess he knocked the props out from under Christianity, didn’t he?" The other said, "No, I don’t think he did. Ingersoll did not explain my mother’s life, and until he can explain my mother’s life I will stand by my mother’s God." -James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited, Tyndale.

"My mother never gave up one me. I messed up in school so much they were sending me home, but my mother sent me right back." -Denzel Washington

"The mother’s heart is the child’s schoolroom." -Henry Ward Beecher

One of God’s most brilliant creations was a mother! Mothers come in all shapes and sizes. They also come in a variety of colors and personalities. Some are weak, some are strong. But no matter what the personal attributes are, they have one unmistakable quality–sacrificial love. Some mothers are highly educated; some ain’t got no education. But they still have that bottom-line quality: LOVE!

Lately I have noticed another thing about mothers – they come in all ages! Our son sent a marvelous picture of our 2 year-old granddaughter Libby. Libby is sitting on a couch next to her one-year-old cousin. She looks as loving and motherly as any woman I have ever seen!

If you want to delight the older ladies in a nursing home, let them hold and talk to a baby, or let children sing for them!

In my book, successful mothers earn the special nickname: “Mom.” My mother was a dynamite kind of lady; the longer I live the more I appreciate her! If you wanted her attention you called her “Mom.” If you wanted to aggravate her, call her “Mother.”

Unfortunately, this is not an ideal world; therefore, some women do not experience the joy of being able to rear their children. Some mothers lose their baby before birth, some at birth, and some mothers have to give their children up for adoption for a variety of reasons.

Life begins at conception, so if there is a miscarriage or the child dies shortly after birth, the mother is still the mother. However, she has a heart full of hurt. Sometimes we forget she is still a mother. Awaiting her arrival in heaven will be that child she gave life to!

When there is a hurting, empty mother, there is usually a hurting, empty dad. They need our love and understanding; they need our prayers. We need to encourage them at every opportunity.

A new mother that cannot provide for her child sometimes gives the baby up for adoption. This is a heart-wrenching experience, often associated with guilt and feelings of loss in the mother and the child.

Because we cannot know how others are hurting, it is wise to be kind and understanding to everyone! That is how God extends His loving forgiveness to those in pain.

Sadly, some of us know mothers that are not good mothers. Because of drugs, abuse, overwhelming problems, rape and incest, their lives have been destroyed. They cannot cope with the stresses of rearing children!

Roberta and I were both blessed with marvelous parents. But I still needed some parenting… so when the US Air Force sent me to Montgomery, Alabama for 4 months and Wichita Falls, TX for 3.5 years, it was the adults in the churches I attended that powerfully impacted my life and ministry. They loved me as their own child! It was absolutely amazing!

That’s really my message for today. I think every parent in our building today is a perfect parent. What I am encouraging each of us to do is to extend our circle of influence by prayer, example, and just plain old loving the unlovable!

We are not called into a ministry of criticism or ignoring the needs of others. Rather we are called into a ministry of helping others. Of being God’s hand extended!

As the writer of today’s scripture said, “May your father and mother be glad; may she who gave you birth rejoice!”

Sincerely, Pastor Leon

Sunday May 12, 2006

Please feel free to contact Pastor Leon Seaton by e-mail. He will be pleased to hear from you!

Fax: 405-375-6152

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