A mother’s job description is enormous. I don’t think there is another career in the nation that imbibes so many profiles. In Chapter 15 in my book, “The Power of Motherhood,” I list just on 100 different profiles and I know I haven’t exhausted the list.
However, there are a few basic things with which we equate motherhood.
* MOTHERHOOD IS SYNONYMOUS WITH HOME. Mother is the heart of the home. God created her for the home. A home is not a home without a mother.
* MOTHERHOOD IS SYNONYMOUS WITH PREGNANCY. I know there are some mothers who don’t like to hear this. They don’t want to be relegated to child-bearing. They believe they were ordained for much more than this. It is true, we will do a lot more than childbearing in our lives. Childbearing is only for a certain season--until we reach menopause. However, it is very much part of being a mother. True motherhood embraces childbearing (1 Timothy 2:15 and 5:14).
* MOTHERHOOD IS SYNONYMOUS WITH BREASTFEEDING. We were physically created for this beautiful role. Did you know that the word “female” in the Greek is a word that means a suckling mother?
* MOTHERHOOD IS SYNONYMOUS WITH THE KITCHEN AND COOKING. This is another area that many women would rather reject. They feel it is too insignificant. But we’ve got the wrong mindset. Nurturing, feeding, and pampering with food is all part of mothering. 1 Timothy 5:10 gives a description of a mother. The first description is that she has “brought up” children. It means “to fatten, feed, and nourish children.” It’s all about feeding. And feeding means cooking! And cooking means being in the kitchen! Dear precious mothers, can I encourage you to stop complaining about cooking and preparing meals? It’s part of your mothering role. A true mother loves to feed her husband, her family, and everyone who comes to her home. Nourishing food. Served with love. Served with joy. Bringing healing to body, soul, and spirit.
Embrace who you are as a mother. Embrace your nurturing anointing. Be a mother, not just in name only.
I know there are some mothers who have not been able to have children of their own. They are still mothers. God not only created us physically for the great task of mothering, but innately. When women embrace the beautiful instinct that God has divinely put within them and reach out to others with their compassionate hearts, they fulfill their great role of mothering.
We are the pourers forth of God’s maternal heart to our families and to the world. Let’s be who God created us to be.
Blessings to you,
Nancy Campbell
Painting by Elizabeth Nourse