Sermon Tone Analysis

ATTN

TOP TEN PRINCIPLES OF MOTHERHOOD

• Shouting to make your children obey is like using the horn to steer your car, and you get about the same results.

• Avenge yourself ~~~ Live long enough to be a problem to your children.

• There are three ways to get something done: Do it yourself, hire someone to do it, or forbid your children to do it.

• The joy of motherhood: What a woman experiences when all the children are finally in bed.

• Money isn't everything, but it sure keeps the kids in touch.

• You know the only people in this world who are always sure about the proper way to raise children?

Those who've never had any.

• Oh to be only half as wonderful as my child thought I was when he was small, and half as stupid as my teenager now thinks I am.

• Motherhood ~~ If it was going to be easy, it never would have started with something called labor!

TOP 8 THINGS YOU WOULD NEVER HEAR YOUR MOTHER SAY

• "How on earth can you see the TV sitting so far back?"

• "Yeah, I used to skip school a lot, too"

• "Just leave all the lights on...it makes the house look more cheery"

• "Let me smell that shirt -- Yeah, it's good for another week"

• "Go ahead and keep that stray dog, honey.

I'll be glad to feed and walk him every day"

• "Well, if Timmy's mom says it's OK, that's good enough for me."

• "The curfew is just a general time to shoot for.

It's not like I'm running a prison around here."

• "Don't bother wearing a jacket - the wind-chill is bound to improve"

• "I don't have a tissue with me... just use your sleeve"

Well, it’s Mother’s Day, and no group deserves our respect like Mom.

And if you haven’t said, “I love you . . .

then you are . . .

(that’s right, sorry!) Get with it!

You know, our moms deserve the greatest of respect, and they used to have it, but our culture has changed.

Some women, wishing to break free from what they saw as patriarchal control have opted for a change in roles which has caused confusion and lowered the pedestal on which mom used to stand.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that generations past have witnessed a mistreatment of women in some cases, but the fruit of its correction has left us with more problems and less respect.

In fact, if you are a “stay-at-home” mom today, you’ve probably experienced that quizzical look from another woman who is juggling home and job when you proclaim that you are tired.

It’s sort of like, “Really, How could you be tired?

You stay home all day.”

Well, if that happen to you, let me suggest something.

The next time someone asks you what you “do,” instead of saying, “I’m a ‘stay-at-home’ mom, just answer the way Tony Campolo’s wife answered when she was in your position.

Whenever someone asked her what she did, she’d reply: "I am socializing two Homo sapiens into the dominant values of the Judeo-Christian tradition in order that they might be instruments for the transformation of the social order into the kind of eschatological utopia that God willed from the beginning of creation."

And then Peggy would turn to her inquisitor and ask, “And just what do you do, hmm?”

I love that!

It simply accentuates the fact that, if you are involved in the raising of children, you really are doing the most important job in the world.

And the most amazing thing is that, while respect has been lost for mothers, in many ways, expectations have actually increased!

Now, we expect mom to do her part of the childrearing while also holding down a job and being a success in the business world.

No wonder our ladies so often feel overwhelmed.

BACKGROUND:

Now, I have to tell you that, if you look to the Bible, sometimes you can be even more intimidated.

The job that the scripture sketches out for a Christian mother is quite daunting.

One of the clearest descriptions of it is found in Proverbs 31:10.

Read this with me:

10 Who can find a virtuous wife?

For her worth is far above rubies.

11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her; So he will have no lack of gain.

12 She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.

13 She seeks wool and flax, And willingly works with her hands.

14 She is like the merchant ships, She brings her food from afar.

15 She also rises while it is yet night, And provides food for her household, And a portion for her maidservants.

16 She considers a field and buys it; From her profits she plants a vineyard.

17 She girds herself with strength, And strengthens her arms.

18 She perceives that her merchandise is good, And her lamp does not go out by night.

19 She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hand holds the spindle.

20 She extends her hand to the poor, Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.

21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, For all her household is clothed with scarlet.

22 She makes tapestry for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

23 Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land.

24 She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies sashes for the merchants.

25 Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come.

26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

27 She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her: 29 “Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all.”

30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, And let her own works praise her in the gates.

Wow! It’s wonder-woman!

This lady does everything!

It can be intimidating to read.

In fact, one lady wrote that about ten years ago, She found her mother at the kitchen table, reading and chuckling in frustration.

She asked her what she was looking at.

She told her that she'd been studying Proverbs for her devotions, and she'd just read chapter 31—the proverb that offers a list of what makes a virtuous wife.

She was frustrated, because she realized she could never be the woman God describes in the passage.

They talked about it some more, and her mom finally arrived at a decision that she said still inspires her today.

While it may not be easy to be a virtuous woman, her mother decided to just take it one verse at a time.

Her mother said, "I'll work on the first item in the list.

When I've got that one mastered, I'll move to the next one—hopefully I'll be a virtuous woman before I die."

She recently checked with her mom to see how she was progressing.

Her mother laughed and told her she was still only seven or eight items into the list, but was currently stuck on, "Her children call her blessed."

"I might have to wait for all of them to grow out of their teens before I can accomplish that one," she said.

Last year, my sisters and I got together and made a certificate of completion in "Proverbs 31 Training."

We took every verse from the passage, and we came up with an example of when she had fulfilled that requirement.

It ended up looking like a real diploma, and it had her many accomplishments listed one after the other.

We all signed it, including my dad.

I read it aloud to her, and when we got to the last verse—"Her children call her blessed"—one by one, we all said, "Mom, you are blessed."

She cried and cried.

I honestly think she never thought she would fulfill all the descriptions of "the Proverbs 31 woman."

When we were able to point out an instance when she had done each, it was too much to contain.

She'd finally reached her whole life's goal!

What she's going to do with her time now is anyone's guess.

That’s the thing.

The Bible lays out for us a clear picture of a godly woman and, if we are not careful, we can be intimidated.

So I want us to take a closer look.

In fact, I want us to try to condense this passage down to just three simple action steps you can take, if you really want to be a godly woman.

We’ll just admit up front that, when we’re through, we’ll probably see lots of areas where we can improve and where we don’t really have it together yet.

That’s ok!

What I want us to see today are three actions we can take to move to the place where the picture given us in this chapter looks progressively more like us.