This week we celebrate Mother’s Day, a national holiday of sorts where we honor the memory and the contributions of our mothers.
We owe them a lot, don’t we? Proverbs tells us that “her worth is far above jewels.” That means that she – an excellent wife and mother – is a pretty valuable commodity!
Even bringing up the idea of motherhood for me is a dangerous subject – after all, I have never been one!
But I have one, and I have been married to one for the greater portion of my life.
I have three children who call the lady who lives in our house “Mom,” and I have watched these two ladies, my own mother and my wife, operate for as long as I can remember. And they are truly amazing!
Some time ago I came across an anonymously-written article entitled “THINGS ONLY A MOM CAN TEACH.” And there were several good comments that I must say for the most part are true:
My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION: “Just wait until your father gets home.”
My Mother taught me about RECEIVING: “You are going to get it when we get home!”
My Mother taught me to MEET A CHALLENGE: “What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you … Don’t talk back to me!”
My Mother taught me LOGIC: “Because I said so, that’s why.” And “If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you’re not going to the store with me.”
My Mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE: “If you don’t stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way.”
My Mother taught me to THINK AHEAD: “If you don’t pass your spelling test, you’ll never get a good job.”
My Mother taught me ESP: “Put your sweater on; don’t you think I know when you’re cold?”
My Mother taught me HUMOR: “When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don’t come running to me.”
My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT: “If you don’t eat your vegetables, you’ll never grow up.”
My Mother taught me about SEX: “How do you think you got here?”
My Mother taught me about GENETICS: “You’re just like your father.”
My Mother taught me about my ROOTS: “Do you think you were born in a barn?”
My Mother taught me about WISDOM OF AGE: “When you get to be my age, you will understand.”
My Mother taught me about JUSTICE: “One day you’ll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you. Then you’ll see what it’s like.”
My mother taught me RELIGION: “You better pray that will come out of the carpet.”
My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL: “If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to knock you into the middle of next week!”
My mother taught me FORESIGHT: “Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you’re in an accident.”
My mother taught me IRONY: “Keep crying and I’ll *give* you something to cry about.”
My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS: “Shut your mouth and eat your supper!”
My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM: “Will you *look* at the dirt on the back of your neck!”
My mother taught me about STAMINA: “You’ll sit there until all that spinach is finished.”
My mother taught me about WEATHER: “It looks as if a tornado swept through your room.”
My mother taught me how to solve PHYSICS PROBLEMS: “If I yelled because I saw a meteor coming toward you, would you listen then?”
My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY: “If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times: Don’t Exaggerate!!!”
My mother taught me THE CIRCLE OF LIFE: “I brought you into this world, and I can take you out.”
My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION: “Stop acting like your father!”
My mother taught me about ENVY: “There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don’t have wonderful parents like you do!”
But there are actually a couple more that are more true to life and realistic.
My mother taught me about God – when I was just a boy, she showed me how to know Jesus as my PERSONAL Savior.
And my mother taught me about LOVE. I mean true, agapé love, the biblical love which means to seek the highest good of those you love.
I cannot remember a time when my mother was not putting us kids first in her life, or at least way ahead of herself. She sacrificed and gave and gave some more, whether it was for clothes or shoes or food or whatever, she did what she had to do to demonstrate how much she loved us.
I am convinced that the essence of the Christ-like life is others-centered living (Check out 2 Corinthians 5:14-15), and my mother exhibited that life day in and day out. That godly example is something for which I will always be truly grateful.
It has been 10 years since my own mother crossed the threshold of eternity, but even as she went through that stage in her life where she required more of the attention and care from her children than ever before, she consistently sought the highest good for those she loved.
A great biblical example!
Happy Mother’s Day!
God bless …
Chuck Tabor is a regular columnist for the Times-Gazette and the News Journal. He is also the former Pastor of Port William UMC.
