This bears reposting today... "Re-thinking Mother's Day"

(Original posting 5/2/11, by Erin Davis at truewoman.com .)

Tell me if this happens at your house.

You circle Mother’s Day on your husband’s calendar with red ink. You leave a note with the URL for your favorite florist on the bathroom sink, along with the number for rush deliveries just in case. You tell your children for weeks that Mother’s Day is “mommy’s special day” and have them rehearse the name of your favorite restaurant so they can drop hints to daddy. 

Then Mother’s Day comes. You still have to make breakfast. The kids don’t dress themselves. Your flowers don’t arrive and your husband takes the family through the drive-thru on your way home from church. The result—you spend the day stewing, and your family is miserable. 

Maybe that’s not how it works for you. Maybe you are one of the few who is celebrated exactly how you want to be each Mother’s Day. But for most, this holiday can often be a major disappointment. 

And you know what? Our husband and kids aren’t to blame. 

Thinking we’re the center of the universe, even if it’s only for a day, misses a major point—namely that we are not the center of the universe. We are a part of a family, an important part, yes, but not so important that we’ve earned the right to demand adoration, affection, and a one-day Get Out of Jail Free card. 

Here are some biblical truths that many of us (yes, even I) need to be reminded of as Mother’s Day approaches:  

• We are called to be humble. 

Matthew 23:12 doesn’t leave much room for tooting our own horn, or demanding that our family toot it. It says, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

• Our role as a mother is not a burden, but a gift! 

Psalm 127:3 says, “Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.” If you are blessed enough to have children, your gift has already been delivered!

• Remember Whom you serve. 

I know that your kids probably don’t send thank-you notes very often, and your husband doesn’t always notice all the things you do to keep the plates spinning. But, the truth is, your husband and kids aren’t who you work for. Only when you are working to please your Creator will you find yourself fulfilled. 

 

Colossians 3:23-24 says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

• Service is our calling. 

In John 13:12-14 we read, “When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, ‘Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.’”

Serving your family is an important job. It is a way to demonstrate Christ to them and to the outside world, where families are crumbling because they don’t know how to serve each other. Psalm 100:2 urges us to “serve the Lord with gladness.” Losing sight of this mission, even for a day, won’t make for a happy heart or a happy family.

. . . If you still feel like you can’t go on without a thank you this Mother’s Day, may I sincerely thank you? Thanks for being a great mom. Thanks for doing the heavy lifting required to teach your kids about Jesus, and parenting according to God’s plan even when it’s countercultural. Thanks for modeling service every day of every year, even when you don’t feel like it. And this Mother’s Day, thanks for finding practical ways to live like it’s not about you so that the people around you know it’s all about Him.