Certainly every day should be one in which we “honor” our mothers (Eph. 6:2). But Mother’s Day affords us the opportunity to show Mom in a special way just how much she means to us. We who have been blessed with godly mothers can think of many things about them that make us thankful. But one I’d like to focus on particularly is a mother’s hard work.
A godly mother plays a very key and constructive role in the home. According to Scripture, this requires at least three things:
1. The Lord
Psalm 127:1 reminds us, “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.” In building her home, a godly woman relies first and foremost on the Lord’s strength and not her own. Thus she ends up being a conduit of God’s power to her husband and children.
Note carefully what Proverbs 14:1 says: “The wisest of women builds her house, but the foolish pulls it down with her hands.” I think there are two significant things worth noting. The first is the phrase “with her hands.” The verse doesn‚Äôt say she builds her house with her hands, but it does say that she “pulls it down with her hands.” That‚Äôs because anything good that‚Äôs built is owing to God‚Äôs hands but whatever is pulled down is owing to our hands. And we pull down what God would love to build through us when we rely on our strength instead of His.
The second thing worth noting is that there‚Äôs no neutral ground, no effort of non-effect. Mothers–and people in general– are either builder-uppers or a tearer-downers. Which are you?
Read Proverbs 31, and you will be amazed at the strength, energy, and productivity of the virtuous woman described there. But that‚Äôs nothing that you and I can‚Äôt have, for if we know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we have His Holy Spirit indwelling us. “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Cor. 4:7).
2. Labor
Again, this woman in Proverbs 14:1 is by no means passive in the building process. Because God is the One who is at work within her, she gives it all she‚Äôs got! “She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness” (Prov. 31:27).
For Mother‚Äôs Day, two little kids put their money together and presented their mom with a houseplant. Of course she was touched by their token of love. The older one then said with a sad face, “We wanted to give you a nice bouquet that we saw at the flower shop, but we couldn‚Äôt afford it. It had a really neat message on it that we thought would be perfect for Mother‚Äôs Day. It said, “Rest in peace.”
– Godly mothering is hard work! So what keeps a mom motivated in all the good that she does for her family? . . .
3. Love
This is certainly a prerequisite for building anything that‚Äôs of eternal value. First Corinthians 16:14 commands us, “Let all that you do be done in love.” All the labor in the world doesn‚Äôt amount to anything if it‚Äôs not motivated by love. Paul said as much in 1 Cor. 13. The great thing about love is that it “never fails” (1 Cor. 13:8a). Why? Because “God is love” (1 John 4:8) “And everyone who loves is born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7b). And so whatever is built out of love will last.
So, we tip our hat and say “Thanks!” to all those hard-working moms that love and serve their families to the glory of God. “Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates” (Prov. 31:31).
This is great info to know.