[Faith-talk] Mother by Leslie B. Flynn

[Paul]

The following article was published many years ago by the American Tract Society.  Hope you all enjoy it.

A mother's love is proverbial.  One schoolteacher giving a lesson in fractions asked, "Johnny, suppose there were seven in your family, five children, a mother and father, a total of seven.  And suppose there was a pie for dessert.  What fraction of the pie would you get?"

Johnny answered, "One-sixth."

"But you don't understand," replied the teacher.  "Don't you know about fractions?"

"I know about fractions, and I know about mothers, too," remarked Johnny.  "Mother would say she didn't want any!"

Many of us owe our mothers a debt of gratitude for the instruction they gave us.

A mother was asked by a neighbor, "Do you do any literary work?"

"Oh, yes," replied the mother.  "I'm writing two books."

"What are their titles?" asked the surprised mother.

Replied the mother, ""John and Mary.  My business is to write on the minds and hearts of my children the lessons they will never forget."

A mother's example is a constant and long-lived testimony to her children. Sunday school teachers were discussing the merits of various translations of the Bible.  One commented, "I like my mother's translation best.  She translated it into life, and it was the most convincing translation I ever saw!"

Isn't it strange how we elevate careers and lower homemaking to the commonplace? Think how many skills a mother must possess to carry out her duties.  She must know something about teaching, interior decorating, cooking, dietetics, psychology, hygiene, social relations, clothing, household equipment, and a host of other things.

still, if a woman teaches someone else's children, she is given professional status--a teacher.  But if she teaches her own children, she is just a mother.  If she does interior decorating, she is a career woman; if she decorates her own home, she is just a homemaker.  If she takes care of others, she's a nurse; but if she nurses her own children, she's just a mom doing her job.

Yes, motherhood demands the skills of many and, unfortunately, receives the recognition of few.

Profound is the influence of a mother.  But her job is far more than providing for the welfare of her children.  Since a child is soft and impressionable, a mother predominately shapes her child's views and morals.  And "the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world."

The role of motherhood is a challenging, yet glorious, calling involving values for time and eternity.  If you are a mother, do you know God's viewpoint of life so you can impart His truths to your children? Do you know God? Do you read the Bible?

The only way to experience the truest joys of being a mother is to know God personally.  This is possible because "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).  When you trust Jesus to forgive your sins, God can then demonstrate His love in and through you.

In your relationship with God, you can also find strength and help to meet every problem of motherhood.  In fact, the Bible plainly states that "God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (II Corinthians 9:8).

Best of all, it's never too late to start being a Godly mother! end of article

I couldn't have written it better, but then again I'm not a woman or that great a writer.  Hope you enjoyed reading this, and a double blessing be yours as you pass it on to others.  Paul