TO ALL SERVING IN A MOM ROLE

Welcome to Be Encouraged. Today is set aside to celebrate MOTHERS. Mothers are an important part of a family. Without Mothers, Life does not go on! You do not have to give birth to be a mother. There are so many who have taken on that role for various reasons. A woman standing in the capacity of a Mother is to be commended!

The role of a mother is not always an easy position. It can bring you joy at the highest level and sadness as the lowest level. It can also give you the greatest satisfaction as well as great sense of disappointment. This is because it is natural for a mother to give her whole self to the person that she is caring for.

Because Mothers are such an important party of the family structure, that will be our approach today. These attributes and qualities of a mother are according to God’s Word:

Our responsibility to our families in the MATERNAL role includes:

F: Faith, Fortitude, Favor, Forgiveness

A: Atonement, Attitude, Adoration

M: Morality (according to God’s way)

I: Intercession, Integrity

L: Love, Leaning on God, Laughter

Y: YOU!

The first letter in the word family is F:

Faith – (2 Timothy 1:15) reads” I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues strong in you.” This scripture tells us that God remembers the faith that our foremothers had. The kind of faith that kept them during times of despair when it seemed as if there was no hope. As a matter of fact, we are all living on the heels of our foremother’s faith. For example, she had enough faith to realize, I may be scrubbing these floors in someone else’s home today but in my family’s next generation these are the same floors that will be in the homes that my family members will own. So, we too must exercise the same faith that has kept our mothers in generations past.

Fortitude – The definition of fortitude is strength. (Philippians 4:13) which reads: “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” Our role as mother in the family is often defined as “strong”. Well God tells us just how strong we can be. We are able to do what we need as mothers because of the strength that God renews in us every day. Our daily strength depends upon our daily connection with God. It is so important that we spend time with GOD daily. Just like we get up in the morning and plug our cells phones in so that our battery will have charge (strength) to last throughout the day, that is just how important it is that we get up every morning and plug into GOD who will provide us the strength that we need for the day. As a matter of fact, it doesn’t matter what time of the day we charge our phone. The same with GOD, it doesn’t matter what time you plug into him, your strength will be renewed.

Favor – (Exodus 33:13) reads “If it is true that you look favorably on me, let me know your ways so I may understand you more fully and continue to enjoy your favor. A GODLY mother has the favor of God upon her. The word “favor “means to give special regard to; to treat with goodwill; to show exceptional kindness to someone. Thank GOD for His favor. The favor of GOD is when we don’t get what we deserve??? Stay in God’s Favor.

Forgiveness – (Nehemiah 9:17b) -They refused to obey and did not remember the miracles you had done for them. Instead, they became stubborn and appointed a leader to take them back to their slavery in Egypt.[a] But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love. You did not abandon them. This sounds similar to a rebellious child or family member who refuses to listen to our Godly guidance. Just as God did, we forgive them. We continue to show love towards them; however, we do not allow them to continue to keep you down trodden or second guessing your actions as a mother. For a very long time, I thought forgiveness meant I had to keep letting that person back into my heart and their behavior hadn’t changed. I learned the hard way that you can forgive someone, but you don’t have to allow them to keep taking you through the same old stuff. You let them know that you forgive them, and you are praying that their you and the rest of the family. Guard your heart and give the situation to God. Yes, easier said than done. But keep trying!

The next letter in the word family is A:

Atonement –Atonement means satisfaction or reparation for a wrong or injury. (1 Chronicles 28:11) - Then David gave Solomon the plans for the Temple and its surroundings, including the entry room, the storerooms, the upstairs rooms, the inner rooms, and the inner sanctuary which was the place of atonement. My interpretation of this scripture is atonement is a place of peace; a safe place. Mothers apply this scripture to your home. Prayer: I pray (your child/ren) find peace and safety in our home. Amen. Your home should be a place of Peace and Safety to your family.

Attitude – (Ephesians 4:23) Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. We all know that a bad attitude is like a flat tire. You can’t go anywhere until you change it. We have to check our attitudes on a regular basis. Our attitudes are very contagious. we should hold Ephesians 4:23 in our hearts. Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes daily. Your attitude depicts your altitude!

Adoration – meaning Respect – (Leviticus 19:3a) reads “Each of you must show great respect for your mother and father”. Continue to read Leviticus 19. As you read, pay extra special attention to verses 11-19. These verses speak specifically as a guideline for your personal conduct. Applying these guidelines will keep you in the favor of God. Proverbs 11:16a e is another scripture regarding respect/adoration, “A gracious woman gains respect”. It is so important that your role as a mother within your family (no matter in what capacity you serve as a mother, that there is respect) Respect is earned.

The next letter in the word family is M:

Morals – (1 Corinthians 15:33) “Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for bad company corrupts good character.”

(Proverbs 22:6) Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.

Matthew 7:12 Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. The Golden Rule

Proverbs 12:1, To learn, you must love discipline. Lastly,

Romans 12:2, Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.

Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Meaning, Right is right! Wrong is wrong! Do not let whomever you are standing in as the maternal representative relax your morals. You have surely heard “Well, so and so’s mother lets them do that. Or I can’t believe you are so “old fashioned”. Or you always throwing up in my face what the Bible says.. Your answer should be “YES. HE WORD DOESN”T CHANGE AND NEITHER WILL MY ANSWER. You’ll thank me later.”

The next letter in the word family is I:

Intercession – (1 Timothy 2:1) I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf and give thanks for them. This is so important because our family members TRULY need our intercessory prayers. Some are involved in situations that they have no idea of how to get out of. Some think their wrong is alright. Some prayed for themselves but since the fix was not instant, they stopped praying about it. Whatever it is that you see in our families that are not of GOD, we should intercede on their behalf and pray for them. Go into our secret closet and pray for them. (James 5:16(b)) The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. As you pray, you will see GOD moving in their lives and they will come back to you and say “Guess what happened”. You will already know before they tell you, God is working things out. And in your heart, you are thanking GOD for hearing your intercessory prayer on their behalf. Just like Jesus does for us as stated in Romans 8:34 Jesus is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading our cases for us, the mother of our families.

Integrity – (Job 8:6) - and if you are pure and live with integrity, God will surely rise up and restore your happy home. No explanation needed. That is our goal. A happy home! (Job 8:20a) But look, God will not reject a person of integrity. That too is self-explanatory. And we all know that if God is for us, no one can take us out! (Proverbs 2:7b) - He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. (Proverbs: 20:7) The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them. It goes without saying, when I say I am blessed, I want to really feel it. And the WORD just told us, BE GODLY, BE BLESSED! One more scripture for Integrity. (Titus 2:7) “And you yourself, you must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching.” You are filling in the role of mother, no matter how you got that title, from whomever you have received the title, it is our responsibility to be an example of Godliness.

The next letter in the word family is L:

Love – Leviticus 19:18 “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone but love your neighbor as yourself. And don’t you know the more you love God the easier it is to love others. Deuteronomy 6:5 “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength”.

Joshua 23:11 says So be very careful to love the Lord your God.

Lean – Lean on God (Proverbs 3:5) Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In short, do your best and let God do the rest.

I know sometimes, a lot of times you get tired because we are human, you’ve have been trying to live right, trying to be an example, taking disappointments on the chin, and still looking up because we know from where our strength comes.

Galatians 6:9 - So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessings if we don't give up.

These tasks are not easy, and now you are looking for some reprieve. The bible also speaks of that. Which leads us to our last L word, Laughter. Job reassures us that, sometimes the family not acting right but you still trying to live right, GOD will restore joy.

Laughter – (Job 8:21 He will once again fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. So don’t get discouraged or even question yourself when it feels like “God’s Way” isn’t working remember our past Mothers’ faith, favor and fortitude who didn’t relax their morals, interceded on our behalf, kept their integrity, loved and leaned on Jesus. That is the strength that we will mock for the sake of our maternal role. So take the time to laugh, put a song in your heart to keep you encouraged. Psalm 126:2(a) “We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy”. So, when you need a laugh, or encouragement remember what Job said and start to hum that song that you have hidden in your heart!

The last letter in the word family is Y. The Y is for YOU!

Y – You cannot forget about yourself! We often get so lost and consumed with all the needs of our family and the responsibilities that it brings, that we forget about ourselves. Matthew 11:28 says “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” God is asking you to release all the concerns and cares of your family to him, get them off your shoulders so that you stand tall and strong and with confidence knowing that if GOD got it, it’s gonna be alright! Once you release your cares to him you can concentrate on you and your closer walk with HIM! In other words… DON’T FORGET TO DO YOU!

In closing, you may not think that you are not making a difference. But you are. You may be so focused on what you still have left to do that you don’t even realize your past accomplishments. That is why it is so important that we operate as GODLY women because the effect that we have on our families’ lives, last a lifetime. When in doubt, consult GOD’s word for guidance. YOU CAN’T GO WRONG!

God is saying be a GODLY woman/maternal representative in whatever capacity and God will do the rest.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY