Love At Home
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Introduction
Introduction
There is one thing that everyone has in common. No matter what your culture, age, race, religion, or political leaning, we all come from a mother. It’s not always simple, though. Some are natural birth mothers, others are mothers through adoption, others have been absent for one reason or another, and some have long-since been laid to rest. But we all come from a mother.
Just think for a minute about the vast scope of responsibility that is on a mother’s shoulders:
The king upon his throne has no higher work than has the mother. (Adventist Home, 231)
Mrs. Ellen White goes on to say that the mother is the Queen of the home, which is a neat idea. But look at the high calling. There is literally no higher responsibility on earth than the work of a mother.
There are opportunities of inestimable worth, interests infinitely precious, committed to every mother. The humble round of duties which women have come to regard as a wearisome task should be looked upon as a grand and noble work. It is the mother's privilege to bless the world by her influence, and in doing this she will bring joy to her own heart. She may make straight paths for the feet of her children through sunshine and shadow to the glorious heights above. But it is only when she seeks, in her own life, to follow the teachings of Christ that the mother can hope to form the character of her children after the divine pattern. (Adventist Home, 234)
Think for a minute about the many tasks of a mother—especially a mother with children at home—you begin to realize that its a full-time job. One study concluded that a typical mother spends 57 hours a week on the chores of the home and duties of childrearing. And that doesn’t include the average of 24 hours of paid work she does on top of that!
Meal preparation and cleanup
House cleaning
Laundry
Managing a child’s schoolwork and helping them with homework
Keeping the home’s daily calendar and meeting appointments
Managing the children’s medical and dental care
Upkeep and replacement of children’s clothing as they tear or grow out of them
Shopping
Tidying toys
Helping kids with baths
Nursing kids and husband when sick
Transportation to school and work
Preparing for events
Packing and unpacking for travel
And the list goes on and on and on. But the most important on that list is this:
Nurturing a godly character in her children
Mothers are the most influential and consequential figures in all of humanity. No politician would rise to power without a mother’s guidance and encouragement. No businessman or academic or scientist would soar to heights of prestige and influence without first having a mother’s confidence in their possibility.
And so, today we celebrate the divine gift of mothers.
I’d like to ask the children to come forward and each pick up a few flowers and then go into the audience and give those flowers to every adult woman you see.
They may be a mother or a grandmother or maybe they’ve never had children, but just being here in church they play a nurturing role. All our women are to be prized and cherished whether they have children or not.
Children and husbands give out flowers
God loves mothers
God loves mothers
There are so many stories of mothers in the Bible: from Eve to Mary and all the stories in-between. We could look at the story of Ruth and the pain of the loss she experienced—her husband and her two children.
We could look at the story of Hannah and the pain and heartbreak she felt for being barren in a society where a woman’s value was based on her ability to bear children.
Or we could look at the story of Jochabed who did everything she could to save her baby, Moses, from a tyrannical government, and who ultimately trusted him to the hands of God.
There are so many stories in the Bible, but I’d like to focus on one story that highlights a simple, yet profound reality:
God Loves Mothers
Turn in your Bibles to 2 Kings 4 and we’re going to consider the story of a widow who was struggling to make ends meet and provide for her family.
Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”
Life doesn’t always feel blessed.
Maybe you’re a single mom, like this widow. Maybe you’ve lost your husband to death or divorce, and now you’re facing the burden and responsibility of raising a family all on your own. Raising godly kids, juggling home duties, providing financially, and still taking care of your own needs is an overwhelming responsibility.
The US Census Bureau looks at the makeup of homes in the US and they found that in 2021 11 million families were run by single parents—nearly 80% of those homes are headed by single mothers.
23% of those homes were poor
29% of those mothers were jobless for the entire year
28% didn’t have enough food to feed their children
52% were never married
30% were divorced
and 18.4% were either separated or widowed
This unnamed widow of one of the sons of the prophets is not alone. And maybe this is, or was, your story too. A single mom struggling…
Thankfully, this mother did the right thing—she asked for help from a godly leader.
And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.”
What can I do for you?
If God were to ask you that question, what would you say right now? What in your life is currently beyond your ability to manage? How do you need help from God?
Without waiting for a reply, Elisha started probing for a solution, “what do you have in your house?”
But there really wasn’t anything in the house. The debt her husband had left her with had already consumed all her posessions. Not only had she sold everything to pay the creditors, but she also didn’t have anything to feed her young boys...
Except...
“Except for a jar of oil.”
That “jar of oil” wasn’t the size of our modern-day canola oil containers. The word “jar” comes from the root for “anoint” and implies a small amount. It wasn’t a large clay flask for storing cooking oil. What this woman had left was a small amount of oil that would barely be enough for an anointing.
But when God asks “what do you have,” He’s got a plan.
When God asked Moses, “what do you have in your hand?” the results ended up being amazing. With the shepherd’s staff in Moses’ hand God made wonderful things happen. The plagues descended, the sea parted, the rock poured out water, and so much more. When God asks, “what do you have?” plan on a miracle.
Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside.”
Gathering lots of jars to fill with oil when you only have a few drops sounds like a fruitless endeavor.
There are many tasks in a mothers day that may feel fruitless. Washing the dishes for the fourth time today, or folding laundry late into the night. Helping a young child pick up their room for the 100th time and wondering if they will ever learn to clean it on their own. Even praying for a wayward child can sometimes feel like shouting into a windstorm. Is it really worth the effort?
The mother in our story dismissed all of those thoughts for two reasons:
She was determined to hold her family together at all costs.
She believed God’s prophet and knew that if she obeyed God, He would take care of them.
A mother’s determination is a power that rivals nearly every other force in the world.
On May 3, 1980, a hit-and-run driver killed Candice Lightner’s 13 year old daughter. The 46 year old man, Clarence Busch, left the girl’s body at the scene. This was his fifth arrest for drunk driving, and Candice was MAD. She was furious that drunk driving caused so much harm and was given so little attention. Clarence Busch only served 2 1/2 years for intoxicated manslaughter after killing Lightner’s daughter, and once he was released he attained a temporary license and then proceeded to cause another wreck while intoxicated.
Candice Lightner formed the foundation Mothers Against Drunk Driving — MADD, and since 1980 drunk driving incidences have been cut in half. The mission of the agency is education. they work closely with law enforcement and they pursue policy changes to prevent drunk driving. They were instrumental in setting the drinking age to 21, and putting into effect the blood alcohol limit of .08 percent.
A determined mother can accomplish A LOT of good for society.
But the mother in our story from 2 Kings 4 had already been applying every ounce of her determination to the problem and her boys were still going to be taken away from her into indentured servitude. Her’s was a problem too big for a mother to solve, no matter how determined she was. Which is why the second point is so significant: she trusted and obeyed God.
So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her.
This was a family affair. The mother’s obedience led to the children’s obedience. She poured and they brought her vessels.
Imagine a young boy coming to your door and asking, “do you have an empty pot or a jar that my mom can borrow? She’ll give it back in a few days.” Of course you’ll lend them your jar. Out of curiosity you watch him hurry back to his mother, and then a few moments later you watch as he and his brother come out and each go to another neighbor and cary more pots and jars. After a little while, he comes back to your house and asks again, “do you have any other empty pots or jars we could borrow? Anything will do.” You give him two or three of your older pots, and then ask, “what are you doing with all these jars and pots?” “You’ll see!” he says, as he scrambles back to his mom.
All the while, behind that closed door, the determined, obedient mother was pouring oil she didn’t have into pots she didn’t own.
That is the real-life story of so many of the mothers in our lives.
They pour the oil of joy, of grace, of forgiveness, of kindness, of hope, of good food—and so often they pour from a place of emptiness.
They don’t feel joyful, but they put on a good face and pour out joy anyway.
They don’t feel like forgiving, but they pour out forgiveness anyway.
They don’t feel like cooking, but they pour themselves out for our health and pleasure.
And when they pour, mothers don’t pour into themselves. So often the needs of the mother are Neglected while all the remaining resources she has are poured out into other’s lives—their children, their husband, their relatives.
Ladies, mothers, I want you to know that a nearly empty jar is full of possibilities when we pour it out in faith and in obedience to God’s command. A nearly empty jar can be life-giving.
And the rule is, the more you give, the more you will receive. Which give us children and husbands an important responsibility in the lives of our wives and mothers: we need to pour back love and affection and kindness and support and joy into their lives. We can’t always be takers.
One after another the pots were filled with oil.
When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”
This whole time, you’ve been watching those boys carry pots and jars from neighbors houses, but now the bustle has stopped and the boys remain inside. What you can’t see is a mother and her two boys kneeling beside all those pots and jars that are filled with a miracle. The miracle of hope, of possibility, of a security and food. They knelt there and wept together and prayed together. But what now?
The prophet said, “go, sell the oil.” They don’t have a booth in the market, and couldn’t afford to pay for one. Where could they sell the oil?
You’ve gone back to Your house chores but then you hear a knock at your door. The two boys are back at your door, with your jars, and a proposal. We can give you back your pots and jars today if you’ll buy this oil from us at a discount from what you can get in the market.
The oil was pure and tasty. Why not? Sure, you’ll buy the oil from them. But you have to ask, where did they get the oil? And that’s when the story comes out about how God made something wonderful when a mother poured out all she had.
Conclusion
Conclusion
There is one conclusion that I would like us to draw from this story: God cares for mothers.
If you are or have been a single mom you know the feelings of loneliness, isolation, and limited resources. There is never enough time in the week to accomplish all that must be done. Few understand your situation, and fewer still are willing to lend a hand.
You don’t have to be a single mom to feel those things. Many mothers feel isolated and stretched to their limit even when they have the support of a marriage.
In all the struggles you face, I want you to know that you are loved by God. He sees you, and He cares. He has a plan for you. It might look tight now. You might not see through your current situation. Your life may feel dark and lonely. But God has a plan for you. Like the widow stooped over with debt, He has a plan to provide for you and give you hope.
Boys and girls, I hope you already know how special your mothers are. Its easy to be annoyed with them when they correct you, or get tired of being told what to do. It’s natural for you to take your mothers for granted, but it’s not right or honorable. Tomorrow is mother’s day, and I hope you make some plans to show her how special she really is, and how much you love her. Make breakfast for her. Write her cards to tell her how much she means to you. Give her hugs and kisses.
No matter how old you are, you can show your mom love this Mother’s day.
But mothers need to be loved and cared for every day, not just Mother’s Day. Here’s the most important way to show your mother love:
Hear, my son, your father’s instruction,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching,
for they are a graceful garland for your head
and pendants for your neck.
When you eagerly obey your mother you show her that you trust and love her. And that’s something you can do every single day, not just on mother’s day. The result of your faithful obedience will be a life filled with more joy and prosperity than you would have had if you didn’t obey.
Now I’d like to talk to our church as a whole, not just the moms or the kids.
As of 2020, of all the homes with children in Boundary County, nearly 25% are single-parent homes. Did you catch that? In our county, one in four of the families with children at home are single-parent homes.
I want you to think about that while I play a short video about a church in the suburbs of Vancouver, BC. It’s a church that started to act like the neighbors acted towards the mother in 2 Kings 4:
Play video
Our church is exploring what to do with things like parking and seating and sabbath school space. The limitations of our current facility are pretty obvious right now. We’re going to be thinking and talking about solutions in the near future, but what if we changed the question. Instead of asking, “what does our church need?” What if we asked, “what does our community need?” And what if we stepped into those needs like the Church In the Valley did? What if we were there for the single mom who needs a car, or the family who’s struggling to get their house in a livable condition?
Speaking of that, I doubt he would approve of me saying this from up front, but David and Nikko Hess are in a bind right now. They‘re trying to build a house So they don’t have to live in their travel trailer another winter, but she’s dealing with a back problem and he’s got knee trouble—both totally unexpected. If you’ve got some time to spare, talk to David and ask him how you might be able to lend a hand.
When we as a church organize ministries that reach into the real-life challenges of the people around us, they see God’s love.
If we want them to know that God loves mothers, then we need to be God’s voice, God’s hands, and God’s pocketbook to show mothers in our community His love.
Will you go home today and show the mothers in your life how much they are loved? And then, kneel down and ask God how He would like our church family to show His love in this community. Then, when He has given you an idea, come tell me about it!
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Since we’ve been talking a lot about oil, I think it would be appropriate to offer an anointing service for all the mothers. You don’t have to be sick to be anointed. Since you are queens of your homes, we‘ll anoint you like Samuel anointed David, the king.
Anointing with oil is a symbol for the Holy Spirit who comes with all the gifts we need to accomplish the tasks God has given us. If you would like to invite the Holy spirit into your life and ministry and home, come forward after the closing hymn and sit in the first three pews on either side for a short service where the elders will anoint you and pray for you.
Closing Hymn: Love At Home (652)