Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. – Exodus 20:12
Our culture sets aside a day every year to celebrate moms.
No doubt, raising a child is one of the greatest challenge most people will face – and one of the greatest rewards in this life. If you are a mom struggling to keep it all together, hang in there, God will help you, and the future is bright.
For some, this is a sad day. Perhaps you would like to be mom and are not; perhaps you have lost a child and are deeply grieved; perhaps you have lost your mom and miss her so much that it hurts. For all of these things, just know that God has not forgotten you, He will help you
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. – Isaiah 41:10
Most people are fortunate to have a good mom. Even the best moms are human, make mistakes, and fail themselves and their children. But most moms love their kids and take care of them as the best they can.
Of course, just as there are good people and bad people, there are good moms and bad moms. Despite the flowery rhetoric you might hear today about mothers, some mothers are mentally ill, or immature, or incapable, or self-absorbed, or just plain mean, or all of those things, and inflict unimaginable pain on their children. For those with the terrible moms, we pray for you, and remind you there are better days ahead.
God requires us to honor our parents. Yes, the good and the bad moms. We just have to honor them in different ways. God will give you wisdom in the way to best honor your mom. Maybe it’s giving respect, obedience, showing love, letting them know you appreciate all they have done for you. Or maybe it is forgiving them and letting go of the past hurts.
May God give you peace and joy to celebrate Mother’s Day.