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The Model of Motherhood - Minister Max Lucado · Max Lucado Daily Sermons

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Speaker 1: My heart is freshly full because of just the most
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Speaker 1: unusual day. My wife and I began the day at
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Speaker 1: the bedside of her dying father. What a dear man
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Speaker 1: hospice is watching over him. It's just barring a miracle
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Speaker 1: a matter of hours. Within a few hours, I was
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Speaker 1: at the birthday party of my two year old granddaughter
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Speaker 1: who didn't want birthday cake, she wanted birthday donuts. And
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Speaker 1: I reflected on this cycle of life that in one
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Speaker 1: day you can reach to one side of the generation
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Speaker 1: and reach to the other, reminded of the frailty of
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Speaker 1: the body, yet the courage of the human spirit because
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Speaker 1: of the presence of Jesus Christ. And so it's really
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Speaker 1: out of that heart that I come to wish all
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Speaker 1: of you mothers just the greatest of blessings. It's not easy.
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Speaker 1: This journey through life is full of pitfalls and turns,
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Speaker 1: surprises and valleys. But we would not make it without you, moms.
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Speaker 1: We would stand absolutely no chance. And I've got a
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Speaker 1: few words that I hope will encourage you. But before
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Speaker 1: I do, I need to speak a couple of words
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Speaker 1: of gratitude to Mark and carry Tidwell, and to Jeff
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Speaker 1: and Carol Nelson. Mark Tidwell has served as executive minister
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Speaker 1: of this church for well over a decade. Jeff Nelson
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Speaker 1: has served as worship leader of this church for over
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Speaker 1: two decades. The Tidwells are moving to Amarillo. The Nelsons
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Speaker 1: are moving to Both families will be sorely missed. And
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Speaker 1: you need to know that these families have discharged every
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Speaker 1: duty that this congregation has ever asked of them. We've
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Speaker 1: tried our best to convince them to stay, but if
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Speaker 1: we can't, we send them off with our blessing. And
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Speaker 1: I just wanted you to know how grateful we are
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Speaker 1: for both of them. Heavenly Father, let your mercy now
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Speaker 1: be upon us as we receive your word. Speak words
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Speaker 1: of truth to us. Forgive our speaker sins here too
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Speaker 1: many to count, Grant that we might see Jesus, just
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Speaker 1: Jesus through Christ. We pray and all the church said.
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Speaker 1: A couple invited some people over to dinner. At the table,
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Speaker 1: the wife turned to their six year old daughter and said,
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Speaker 1: would you please say the blessing? The girl said, oh,
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Speaker 1: I wouldn't know what to say, and the mom said, well,
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Speaker 1: just say to the Lord what you hear mommy say
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Speaker 1: to the Lord, and the little girl about her head
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Speaker 1: and said, oh Lord, why on earth did IM about
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Speaker 1: all these people to dinner. I read about a family
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Speaker 1: that was driving on the highway when they noticed a
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Speaker 1: child in the car of the next lane holding up
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Speaker 1: a handwritten sign that read help. Before they could do anything,
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Speaker 1: her little brother held up a second sign that read,
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Speaker 1: my mother is singing. A unique challenge of mothers these
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Speaker 1: days is learning the language of text messaging. One mom
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Speaker 1: texted her son what do I D K L Y
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Speaker 1: and T T Y L mean? He replied, I don't know,
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Speaker 1: love you talk to you later. She replied, okay, ask
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Speaker 1: your sister. One mom texted her son and said, your
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Speaker 1: great aunt just passed away. Lol. The son replied, now,
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Speaker 1: why is that funny? She said, it's not funny. What
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Speaker 1: do you mean, well, mom, lol means laughing out loud.
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Speaker 1: She said, Oh, I thought it meant lots of love.
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Speaker 1: Now I have to call everyone back. It's not easy
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Speaker 1: being a mom. But if only the problems were limited
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Speaker 1: to texting and hosting. This is a stormy season for mothers. Gangs, pornography, violence.
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Speaker 1: Few generations have had to face what our children have
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Speaker 1: to face, and consequently, few generations of mothers have had
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Speaker 1: a heavier responsibility than moms do today. Wasn't that long
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Speaker 1: ago that we felt like the programs we watched on
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Speaker 1: television in the schools to which we sent our children
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Speaker 1: were on our side. Now many moms feel like they're
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Speaker 1: swimming upstream against the influence of culture. The children are
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Speaker 1: taught that the world evolved by accident, and the Bible
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Speaker 1: is full of myths, and that there are no absolute
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Speaker 1: standards of right and wrong. It's a stormy season for
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Speaker 1: Christian mothers. The value of motherhood itself is under attack.
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Speaker 1: The message is clear, being a mother is fine, but
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Speaker 1: having a career is better, and moms who choose to
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Speaker 1: forego or postpone their careers find themselves in a defensive posture,
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Speaker 1: almost like they have to apologize for making time for
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Speaker 1: their children. Financial pressure is equally intense. Many young families
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Speaker 1: begin their lives with a burden of college debt or
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Speaker 1: an oversized mortgage payment. For many moms, there is the
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Speaker 1: immense challenge of parenting alone. For whatever reason, the death
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Speaker 1: of a husband or the pregnancy outside of marriage, or
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Speaker 1: divorce or separation. They battle the unspeakably stiff winds of
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Speaker 1: being a single mom. It's hard for us to fully
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Speaker 1: appreciate this challenge. What is it like to wake up
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Speaker 1: before the kids get up, to get them ready, drop
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Speaker 1: them off at school or wherever it is they spend
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Speaker 1: the day, Rush to a demanding job, pick up the
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Speaker 1: kids in the afternoon, provide for their meals, help them
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Speaker 1: with their homework, and then get them to bed. And
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Speaker 1: then with whatever time remains, there are bills to be paid,
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Speaker 1: and laundry to be done, and a house to be
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Speaker 1: cleaned and attached to that. The emotional stigma that can
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Speaker 1: come from the life loneliness is singlehood. And you have
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Speaker 1: one of the greatest challenges of our society. So what's
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Speaker 1: a mother to do? Challenges at school, challenges from peers,
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Speaker 1: challenges at home. Where can a mom turn for help?
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Speaker 1: One place is to the story of Mary, the mother
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Speaker 1: of Jesus. If anyone ever provided a model of godly
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Speaker 1: parenting in a hostile environment, it was she. Whereas moms
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Speaker 1: today may face a storm, we agree, don't we that
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Speaker 1: Marry the mother of Jesus battled a typhoon. She raised
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Speaker 1: Jesus in a difficult environment, yet did so successfully. So
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Speaker 1: Let's take just a minute and look at some of
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Speaker 1: the difficulties that Marry the Mother of Jesus faced. Let's
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Speaker 1: look at Mary's sources of struggle, the first of which
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Speaker 1: was a suspicious past. God chose her to be the
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Speaker 1: mother of Jesus, but other than Joseph, no one believed
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Speaker 1: her story. No one, and if Nazareth was like any
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Speaker 1: other small town, juicy gossip was the coin of the realm.
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Speaker 1: Mary had to live with the undeserved stigma of being
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Speaker 1: perceived as an immoral woman. She was known as the
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Speaker 1: woman who gave birth to a child conceived outside of wedlock.
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Speaker 1: Thirty years later, the enemies of Jesus made what seems
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Speaker 1: to be a thinly veiled slight about this mother when
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Speaker 1: they said to Jesus, we were not born of fornication,
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Speaker 1: as if implying that he was. How can you raise
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Speaker 1: godly children when your own reputation is in question? Some
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Speaker 1: of you mothers wrestle with that very question. You're not
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Speaker 1: proud of the things you've done. You're not proud of
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Speaker 1: the fact that others know of the things you've done.
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Speaker 1: And like Mary, you may have a suspicious past. But
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Speaker 1: like Mary, you don't have to be held back, because
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Speaker 1: here's the truth. The truth is your past has been
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Speaker 1: buried in the sea of God's grace. For as high
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Speaker 1: as the heavens are above the earth, so great is
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Speaker 1: his love for those who fear him, As far as
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Speaker 1: the east is from the west, so far as he
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Speaker 1: removed our transgressions from us. So the next time you
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Speaker 1: feel less than qualified, you just remember for the joy
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Speaker 1: that was set before him. Jesus endured the cross despising
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Speaker 1: the shame. That is to say, he not only bore
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Speaker 1: our sins, but he bore our shame. So you don't
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Speaker 1: have to bear it anymore. He has chosen you for
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Speaker 1: this holy task. Mary had a second challenge. Not only
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Speaker 1: does she have a suspicious past, but she had severe poverty.
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Speaker 1: Mary and Joseph were peasant parents. The sacrifice they offered
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Speaker 1: in the temple when Jesus was born was the offering
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Speaker 1: of the poor two sparrows. This was a low income family,
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Speaker 1: after all. Is there a more meager beginning than a
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Speaker 1: manger and a barn? And that's all that Mary had
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Speaker 1: to give her child. Do you ever feel inadequate because
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Speaker 1: you feel like you have little to give your child?
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Speaker 1: Are your guilt ridden because your child doesn't have the
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Speaker 1: latest iPhone or the newest brand of gens or computer games?
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Speaker 1: And what about those expensive music and athletic camps in
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Speaker 1: private school that some children end up at. Are you
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Speaker 1: attempted to assume a budget busting debt just so you
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Speaker 1: can give your child everything that he or she says
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Speaker 1: he wants. Can I urge you to be careful? God
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Speaker 1: may be giving you a marvelous opportunity to teach your
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Speaker 1: child that life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.
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Speaker 1: Money is way overrated, love never is. And if all
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Speaker 1: you can give your child is a home, how be
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Speaker 1: it simple but full of love? Then you are raising
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Speaker 1: your child in a world of affluence. Mary had another
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Speaker 1: challenge spiritual pressure. Your son was hated by the authorities.
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Speaker 1: Remember how Herod went after Jesus. Can you imagine the
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Speaker 1: ruler coming after your young child. Mary and Joseph had
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Speaker 1: to flee to Egypt, letst the power of the land
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Speaker 1: attack and kidnap and kill their child. They took drastic
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Speaker 1: steps to protect their baby. Sometimes moms, you have to
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Speaker 1: take drastic steps as well. Remember there's a ruler in
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Speaker 1: pursuit of your child. His name's not Herod, his name
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Speaker 1: is Satan. So take your stand against the devil's schemes.
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Speaker 1: For our struggle, it's not against flesh and blood, but
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Speaker 1: against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this
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Speaker 1: dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in
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Speaker 1: the heavenly realms. Satan is seeking to kidnap and harm
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Speaker 1: your child. And he's a clever schemer. He makes evil
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Speaker 1: look good. He makes good look evil. So Mary models
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Speaker 1: what to do. She took serious steps. We must do
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Speaker 1: the same. We must pray fervently. We must call upon
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Speaker 1: every friend we got. We must enlist the prayers of
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Speaker 1: grandmas and grandpas and neighbors and friends. We must teach scripture.
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Speaker 1: We must love our children with a deep, abiding love.
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Speaker 1: We must do whatever it takes. Sometimes this includes drastic
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Speaker 1: steps that make you unpopular with your kids. Little or
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Speaker 1: no TV, little or no computer games. You don't need
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Speaker 1: to go to Egypt, but you do need to go
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Speaker 1: to any extreme that you feel to protect your child.
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Speaker 1: That is your god given responsibility. And I would have
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Speaker 1: a hunch that most dads would agree that we need
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Speaker 1: the mom's intuitive sense to help us make some difficult decisions.
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Speaker 1: Mary had another challenge, and that is single parenthood. After
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Speaker 1: reaching the age of twelve, we never hear from After
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Speaker 1: Jesus reached the age of twelve, we never hear from
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Speaker 1: Joseph again. We read about Mary at the marriage feast
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Speaker 1: and Cana Mary at the Cross, but Joseph is never mentioned.
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Speaker 1: It could very well be that Joseph died when Jesus
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Speaker 1: was young. This means that for most of her life,
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Speaker 1: Mary was a single mom. George Brooch in his book
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Speaker 1: One by One says that only two and five children
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Speaker 1: will make it to age eighteen with both parents in
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Speaker 1: the house. Numerous moms have to wear the hats of
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Speaker 1: mom and dad. So if you are one of them,
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Speaker 1: let Mary inspire you. You're a hero in heaven and
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Speaker 1: you're a hero here. Our hats are off to you.
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Speaker 1: You work all week long, you're here on the weekends
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Speaker 1: with your child, sometimes against your child's will, sometimes against
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Speaker 1: the earthly father's will. But you do it and God
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Speaker 1: will reward you for it. He says. Let us not
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Speaker 1: grow weary while doing good for indue season. We will
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Speaker 1: reap if we do not lose heart. Does it surprise
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Speaker 1: you to know that Mary had some struggles. It might
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Speaker 1: encourage you to find that Mary found strength. We've looked
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Speaker 1: at Mary's struggles. Now let's look at some sources of
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Speaker 1: Mary's strength, the first of which was her holy call.
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Speaker 1: When told she would be the mother of the Son
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Speaker 1: of God, she said, I'm the Lord's servant. She had
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Speaker 1: a holy call on her life that said, whatever you
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Speaker 1: need me to do, God, that's what I'll do. This
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Speaker 1: is not a call to be a success or, to
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Speaker 1: be famous, or to be rich, but she just wanted
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Speaker 1: to be a servant, a servant to God. In her case,
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Speaker 1: being a good servant meant being a good mother. She
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Speaker 1: viewed motherhood as a high and holy call. Billy Graham
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Speaker 1: speaks of a sign he saw hanging over a kitchen sink,
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Speaker 1: Divine duty done here daily, mothers, you have a divine duty.
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Speaker 1: You have a few precious years to partner with God
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Speaker 1: in the shaping of a soul. And you have no
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Speaker 1: higher call, no more breath taking privilege, than to instruct
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Speaker 1: your child about Jesus. Ultimately, this is the task not
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Speaker 1: of the church, the school, the daycare, grandparents, or the government.
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Speaker 1: This is a task that falls in the home. It's
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Speaker 1: the task of mom and dad. Now, if you see
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Speaker 1: this call, if you see being a parent a call,
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Speaker 1: a holy call, then you're going to find joy. The
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Speaker 1: Bible says that children are a heritage from the Lord.
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Speaker 1: Mary was also strengthened by her obedient child. I know
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Speaker 1: we'd all love to have Jesus Christ as our child,
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Speaker 1: but remember he was tempted and he never sinned. What
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Speaker 1: a difference it must have made for Mary to have
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Speaker 1: a compliant, obedient child. Young people, your obedience will raise
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Speaker 1: the happiness level in your house. You cannot be like Jesus,
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Speaker 1: but you can try. Children obey your parents in the Lord.
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Speaker 1: I don't have many regrets in life, but I have
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Speaker 1: two years out of my teenage years that I would
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Speaker 1: covet to half back. And during those two years, I
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Speaker 1: was disobedient to my mother and my father. I was disrespectful,
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Speaker 1: I was caucky, I was too big for my breeches,
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Speaker 1: and I made their lives miserable. Even forty years later,
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Speaker 1: I can still see the sadness in their faces. Young people,
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Speaker 1: your parents are not perfect, but guess what neither are you?
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Speaker 1: Young people, Your parents do not know everything, but guess
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Speaker 1: what they know more than you do. And no one
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Speaker 1: loves you more than your mother does. No one loves
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Speaker 1: you more than your mother does. One of the best
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Speaker 1: things you can do this Mother's Day is to put
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Speaker 1: your arms around her and just say, Mom, you can
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Speaker 1: count on me. I'm gonna do better. It'll mean a
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Speaker 1: lot to her. It'll also mean a lot if you
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Speaker 1: keep the smelling salts handy, because she'll faint. Nothing could
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Speaker 1: mean more to her than your love. Mary was also
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Speaker 1: reinforced by a committed husband. We don't know much about Joseph,
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Speaker 1: but we know he and Mary were on the same page. Men,
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Speaker 1: it's essential that you seek to be on the same
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Speaker 1: page with your wife. You may have seen the cartoon
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Speaker 1: in which a husband comes home to a frazzled wife,
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Speaker 1: hair in colors, robe disheveled, house a mess, and the
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Speaker 1: caption has her saying, every day you ask me what
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Speaker 1: I do all day long? Today I didn't do it,
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Speaker 1: And here it is. Men, do you know what your
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Speaker 1: wife does all day long? She performs the role of
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Speaker 1: baby feeder, walker, hugger, changer, singer, teacher, and counselor. She
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Speaker 1: masters algebra, scouting, first aid, and first steps. She pays
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Speaker 1: bills to the creditors, pays attention to the stove, and
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Speaker 1: pays respect to her lord. She is a listener, an arbitrator,
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Speaker 1: a party planner, a chauffeur, and a lover. She may
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Speaker 1: kill roaches and wasps, but she seldom kills time. She
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Speaker 1: is a mother, and sometimes mothers get a little tired.
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Speaker 1: Some time ago, my wife, Dianlon, and I were watching
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Speaker 1: videos from the days when our daughters were young, and
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Speaker 1: she made this comment, I think I was tired for
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Speaker 1: ten years. Men, we're asking a lot from our wives.
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Speaker 1: Believe it or not, they really don't want your advice,
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Speaker 1: your suggestions, fix it plans. What they want. What they
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Speaker 1: desire is your understanding. The Bible says husbands should live
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Speaker 1: with your wives in an understanding way. So next time
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Speaker 1: you're tempted to complain at the lack of romance or
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Speaker 1: the abundance of laundry, try to imagine what it's like
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Speaker 1: to be a mom. Be careful how you do this. However,
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Speaker 1: a workaholic husband resolved to be a better husband, and
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Speaker 1: he showed up at home early one afternoon with flowers
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Speaker 1: in his hand and a bottle of champagne, singing I
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Speaker 1: love you truly. His wife burst into tears. It's been
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Speaker 1: a horrible day. I burned the toast, the dog is sick,
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Speaker 1: the kids relate to school, and now you show up drunk.
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Speaker 1: Mary had one other resource, as we wrap this up,
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Speaker 1: The mother of Jesus had a concerned female friend. The
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Speaker 1: mother of Jesus found strength in a network of friendships.
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Speaker 1: We know at least one of these friends, her cousin Elizabeth,
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Speaker 1: who became the mother of John the Baptist. Elizabeth encouraged Mary.
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Speaker 1: You need an Elizabeth in your life. No husband I
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Speaker 1: know of can provide all you need. You need a
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Speaker 1: female friend to encourage you. The Church can help with this.
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Speaker 1: Many moms have found strength in the women's ministry or
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Speaker 1: the ladies, Bible classes, or mentoring moms. Some meet with
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Speaker 1: others for prayer. Others network with moms in their neighborhoods.
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Speaker 1: Some take turns watching each other's kids. Seek to build
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Speaker 1: relationships with other moms. With your sisters in Christ, let
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Speaker 1: us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do,
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Speaker 1: but let us in courage one another, especially now that
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Speaker 1: the day of His return is drawing near. Moms seek
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Speaker 1: encouragement in the Church, give encouragement to the moms. I
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Speaker 1: read recently about a horse in the Calgary, Canada Stampede
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Speaker 1: that pulled over seven thousand pounds. Second place horse pulled
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Speaker 1: just under seven thousand pounds, but when they hooked them
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Speaker 1: up together together, the horses pulled twenty seven thousand pounds.
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Speaker 1: By pulling together, we can do more than the sum
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Speaker 1: of our parts. So husbands, support these moms. Children, obey
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Speaker 1: your parents. Church encouraged these moms and moms don't give up.
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Speaker 1: Mary didn't. She was rewarded for her faithfulness. She was
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Speaker 1: present at the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
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Speaker 1: She saw her other children come to faith in their
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Speaker 1: brother Jesus Christ, and she was one of the one
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Speaker 1: hundred and twenty in the upper room when the church began.
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Speaker 1: She was rewarded. Mary was rewarded, and you will be too.
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Speaker 1: You have a divine calling. You have a divine friend,
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Speaker 1: and he knows the challenges you face, and he will
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Speaker 1: help you face them. Amen. And so Lord, this is
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Speaker 1: our prayer that your blessings would please be upon these
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Speaker 1: mothers and upon those of us who need them. May
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Speaker 1: you give them strength, faith and hope. Through Christ. We
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Speaker 1: pray and all the church said.
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Speaker 2: That's all that is endless, So why so? But somehow
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Speaker 2: I'm still lost in you.
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Speaker 3: The streets are full of moving shadows, countless place as
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Speaker 3: I could go, city shining, people passing, Yet I still
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Speaker 3: feel so lone. Every road keeps leading nowhere. Every sky
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Speaker 3: feels cold and blue. In this world so fast and open,
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Speaker 3: I'm still lost in missing you.
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Speaker 1: The world is.
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Speaker 4: Wild, so wid before me, but I keep blues in
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Speaker 4: my way somewhere the less distance your memory makes mistake
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Speaker 4: the worlds without us, but my heart remains untrue final
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Speaker 4: matter where these feet may.
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Speaker 3: Wonder, I'm still lost in saying you. I have tried
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Speaker 3: to outrun silence, try to leave your ghost behind, but
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Speaker 3: your name still echo softly through the corners of my mind.
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Speaker 4: The world is wise, so maybe before me, but I
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Speaker 4: keep losing my way somewhere in the lestes us. Your
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Speaker 4: memory makes me stand the world los a without us,
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Speaker 4: But my heart remain is untrue frontal metal, where these
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Speaker 4: fee may wonder, I'm still lost in sing you. Maybe
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Speaker 4: someday stop searching for your face in every crowd, But
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Speaker 4: until that day, this broken heart will keep calling your
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Speaker 4: name out.
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Speaker 3: The world is wise.
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Speaker 5: So I before me, But I keep losing my way.
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Speaker 4: Somewhere in lest distance, your memory thanks me.
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Speaker 2: The world moves.
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Speaker 4: On without us, but my heart remains some true final matter.
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Speaker 5: These feet, may.
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Speaker 1: You wonder
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Speaker 5: I'm still lost, then missing you