Mission Possible!

Mothers, we have a mission from God!

There are times, mothers, when you feel as though you are not able to serve the Lord because you are so busy looking after children. You wish you could escape the frustrations and tediousness of each day and instead go out as a laborer on the mission field. Mother, I want to remind you that you are already a missionary. You already have a mission field. It’s right in front of your eyes.

In Matthew 9:37-38, Jesus said to his disciples, "The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest."

As a mother in your home, you are fulfilling this scripture in two ways:

You are a laborer yourself as you train your children for the purposes God has planned for them.
You are supplying laborers for God’s harvest field as you receive the children He has planned for you and as you train them for God’s army.

Mothers, we have a mission from God! We have a destiny! Motherhood and training our children in God’s ways has been God’s plan for women from the beginning of creation, but I believe that there is a special call from God for the mothers of today. I believe the mothers of this hour could well be the mothers who will train the generation that will prepare the way for the coming of the Lord. We have a mighty task – greater than any time in history. Let’s take up our mission.

WHAT IS A MISSION?

Here are some dictionary meanings of the word ‘mission.’

To be assigned to a special work

Our purpose in life

That which we are fitted to do – our calling

The goal or task that we are destined to accomplish in life

Delegated to perform a specific or special task.

Life’s principal task.

Synonyms for mission are:

a charge, a duty, a trust, an assignment, an undertaking,

an enterprise, a mandate, a calling, and a pursuit.

A mission is also used in the context of a military operation:

It is a group of forces and resources especially of military units

for the accomplishment for a specific objective.

We know that God has given us ‘arrows’ to train for Him. Mothers, we are involved in military training. What an awesome task.

WHY DO WE DO IT?

God CREATED us for this task.

God has created women physically for the task of childbearing. He has given us a womb to conceive and nurture life, and breasts to nourish that life. One of the Greek words for woman is ‘thelus’ derived from ‘thele’ meaning ‘the nipple of a woman’s breast, to nourish, to give suck.’ It is translated "woman" in Romans 1:26 and "female" in Matthew 19:4 and Mark 10:6.

The word ‘woman’ is a combination of ‘womb’ and ‘man’. We are ‘womb men.’ The womb is our most distinguishing characteristic as a woman. It is a gift from our Creator. It is His plan and destiny for us. When we decide to cut off the function of our womb, we despise God’s ultimate gift to us as women, and we thwart God’s highest calling for our lives.

God COMMISSIONED us for this purpose.

In Genesis 3:20 "Adam called his wife’s name Eve: because she was the mother of all living." When Adam said these words, Eve was not yet a mother. She had never experienced motherhood. She had never seen a newborn baby. She had never nursed a child at her breast. Why therefore, does Adam call her a mother? Adam spoke under the anointing of God and gave a prophetic word to his wife, and to all women to come. Eve was the prototype of all women who would be born. When Adam spoke these words, he proclaimed Eve’s highest destiny of motherhood and also that of all women to follow.

1 Timothy 5:10 gives a description of a woman who fulfilled God’s purposes for her life. She lived in the anointing of motherhood. She embraced the children that God intended for her and nurtured, nourished and trained them. But that was not all. She continued in motherhood all her life, releasing the maternal heart that God had put within her by divine creation. She opened her doors in hospitality, and she reached out her hands to care for the needy and the poor and those who needed the consolation of her mother heart.

God wants us to be COMMITTED to His calling for us.

Colossians 4:17 says, "Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it. Motherhood is the ministry that we have received from the Lord. Therefore we should fulfil it with all our hearts."

J.B. Phillip’s translation says, "God ordained you to your work – see that you don’t fail Him."
I like Moffat’s translation too, "Attend to the duty entrusted to you…and discharge it to the full."

Colossians 3:23,24, J.B. Phillips says, "Whatever you do, put your whole heart and soul into it, as into work done for God, and not merely for men – knowing that your real reward, a heavenly one, will come from God, since you are actually employed by Christ…" for the Lord! You are making your home a sanctuary for the Lord. You are training your children for God and for the purposes that He has planned for them. Be encouraged. You are in the service of the King. Sometimes you can feel as though it is a thankless task, but God is watching. Don’t fail Him! Remember that Christ employs you. Therefore, be committed. Dear mother, God is your employer. It is God who has ordained you to mother the children that He has graciously given you. When you feel frustrated and no one appreciates your daily service in the home, (Yes, I’ve felt like that many times!) remember that you are working

God wants us to COMPLETE our work.

Luke 12:37-39 says, "Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he comes shall find watching…and if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through."

One of our biggest tasks as a mother is to be a WATCHDOG! In Titus 2:4 the phrase "keepers at home" actually means to be the "guardians of the home." We are to carefully guard our little flock like a ferocious watchdog. We must never give up on our job until the day when we meet the Lord. We need to stay on duty through every watch.

THE FIRST WATCH. Most mothers are faithful in the first watch when their babies are little. They devote themselves to caring for their little one, nursing their baby, and always being available to them. If the Lord were to come on the First Watch, they would be found faithful.

THE SECOND WATCH. Some mothers sit down a little on this watch. The children are now school age, and they can’t wait to get them off to school so they can get on with their own projects and things that they want to do. They send them off to kindergarten, and to school, to sit "in the counsel of the ungodly." Psalm 1:1. They are not concerned that their children may be learning things that are anti-God and anti-family and that they are being slowly brain-washed by humanistic philosophy. Would they be found faithful if the Lord should come during the Second Watch?

THE THIRD WATCH. Those who have been faithful in the first two watches, sometimes slip up here. Their children are now teens and going on to College. They feel that they are old enough to go out on their own, choose their own friends and date whoever they want. The mother feels that she really has time now to do other things, and even to get into ministry for the Lord!

Oh dear mothers, this is one of the most important watches. We simply cannot sit down on this watch. We must stay awake, be faithful, and stand upon our watch in the Third Watch. This is the most vulnerable age of all. This is when we need to be on duty in the home. We can’t vacate our post now! Our young people need constant watching and guarding. We need to be guarding carefully what they are watching, what they are reading and where they are going. We need to check what is hidden in their bedrooms. Yes, mothers, we are responsible before God. We are in charge of their lives and what is in our home while they live under our roof.

This is when we get serious about the prayer watch. We need to spend much time in prayer for our young people. More is wrought by prayer than this world dreams of. Don’t give up on the Third Watch. We need to faithfully teach them God’s ways of godly courting, rather than worldly dating, and pray much for God’s partner for their lives. Oh may we be found faithful during this Third Watch.

THE FOURTH WATCH. The children are getting married now. The grandchildren are coming along. Do we give up motherhood now? No, we continue our mission until the day we meet Jesus. Of course, we can’t direct their lives now. They are setting up their own homes and establishing their own families. But we are commanded as older women to teach and encourage the younger mothers. However, our big job on this watch is to continue the PRAYER WATCH. We are to be faithful in prayer for our children, our grandchildren and our great-grandchildren.

I know of one dear mother who is now in her nineties. She prays for all her offspring every morning before she starts the day. When another grandchild or great-grandchild is born, she gets up 15 minutes earlier to add this child to her prayer list. Now in her old age, instead of sleeping in, she gets up earlier and earlier to pray for her descendants.

My husband comes from a family of nine children – all are serving the Lord. Their children are all serving the Lord, and now they are raising another generation to serve the Lord. They believe this blessing upon this family is because of the great-grandmother who was an intercessor and who prayed for the "coming generations."

Matthew 14:23-27 tells an incident in the life of Jesus, "When he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray…. and in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea…." (Mark 6:4;8) Jesus gives us the example of praying in the fourth watch. It was while he was praying that he became aware of the disciples in the storm. It is as we pray that God will show us the areas of need that we should be praying about for our families. This is how we guard in the fourth watch.

2 John v.8 RSV says, "Look to yourselves, that you may not lose what you have worked for, but may win a full reward." Don’t lose all you have done by sitting down in the Fourth Watch.

Here are some other scriptures to remind us to be continually on our watch.

Jeremiah 51:12, "Make the watch strong."

Habakkuk 2:1, "I will stand upon my watch." We mustn’t sit down on our watch, or go to sleep on our watch. Remember that we are the guardians of our home.

1 Thessalonians 5:6, "Therefore let us not sleep, as do others, but let us watch and be sober."

Hebrews 13:17 is a word to elders of the church, but I believe that it is also a word for us as mothers and for fathers too of course. "They watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief." If we are faithful Watchdogs unto the end, we will have joy and not grief.

WHAT KIND OF CHILDREN DOES GOD WANT US TO TRAIN?

WHAT IS THIS TASK FORCE TO BE LIKE?

As we discuss the following character traits, we will realize that they first have to be a living reality in our own lives before we can teach them to our children. In fact, we will impart them to our children by living example, rather than by teaching.

Children will learn far more from your daily attitude in the home than they will learn from what you teach them!

I have commented only briefly on the following points. However, I would ask you to pray about each one and ask God to show you how to impart each character trait to your children. God will give you wisdom and anointing. Above all, pray these attributes into your children. More is wrought by prayer than any other method. I have not mentioned the obvious point, which is that we need to lead each one of our children to know Jesus as Lord and Saviour and into a born again experience. We know that this can only happen by the working of the Holy Spirit in their hearts, but God has chosen you as their mother to lead them to the foot of the cross. They need a revelation of Jesus and His blood sacrifice for them and a personal encounter with God if they are going to continue to walk with God as they grow and leave the nest.

CHILDREN WHO LOVE GOD.

Deuteronomy 6:5 is one of the great scriptures in the Word of God. God says, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." Mark 12:30.

Matthew 22:38 says that "This is the first and great commandment." If this is the first and greatest commandment, this is where we must start. Love for God is the foundation of everything. We can know all truth and have all knowledge, but without loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, it is lifeless. It becomes legality, and children will eventually run from legality. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

How can we teach our children to love God? This same passage in Deuteronomy tells us how. v 6-7, "And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up…"

Our children will learn to love God in the atmosphere of our home where God is loved. Children imbibe the atmosphere of God’s love. They won’t grow up loving God where parents take their children to church on Sunday but there is bickering and hypocrisy in the home during the week.

CHILDREN WHO ARE OBEDIENT AND WHO KNOW HOW TO TAKE ORDERS.

The first lesson a soldier learns in training for a Task Force is how to obey. We may as well forget every other lesson if this one is not learned properly. However, before we can teach our children to obey, we must first teach them how to listen.

Listening is the prerequisite for obedience.

I love the picture that is painted in Proverbs 8:34. Can you see this trained soldier who is eager to get into the battle? He can’t wait to be involved. But he has learned that he cannot do anything until he hears orders from his captain. "Blessed is the man that hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors."

As soon as your little ones can understand, teach them how to hear. Give orders face to face with eye-to-eye contact. When you know that they have heard you, train them to obey immediately. Mother, you are the one who determines what kind of ears your children have. Do they have lazy ears? Dull ears? Defiant ears? Resistant ears? Forgetful ears?

Read Matthew 13:15-16; Acts 28:27; Hebrews 5:11.

God wants us to train our children to have "obedient ears" Proverbs 25:12, and "swift ears" James 1:19. There are two kinds of children – obedient doers and forgetful hearers. Which kind are you training?

The two main Hebrew words for hearing are:

1. 'shama’ which means ‘to hear with attention and obedience, to give undivided listening attention." When God gave Solomon the opportunity to ask whatever He wanted from the Lord, He prayed, "Give therefore thy servant an understanding (shama) heart…" He asked for a heart that listens to God. The Bible says that this prayer "pleased the Lord." 1Kings 3:3-14.

2. ‘qashav’ which means 'to prick up the ears, e.g. sharpening them like an alert animal.’ Now this is the kind of hearing we want our children to have, isn’t it? This is the word that is used in 1 Samuel 15:22,23, "Behold to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken (qashav) than the fat of rams…"

When your children learn to listen, they’ll learn to obey.

When they learn to obey you, they’ll learn to obey God.

True hearing results in action!

Delayed obedience is disobedience!

Read these scriptures: Proverbs 1:5; 13: 1; 15:32; 23:12; 25:12; Isaiah 30:9

Important point. Is there rebellion in your children? Check your own heart. If there is rebellion in any area in your own heart, you will often see it reflected in your children.

CHILDREN WHO FEAR THE LORD.

Once we have taught children to obey, we then teach them to fear the Lord.

Deuteronomy 4:9,10, "I will make them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children."

Deuteronomy 6:1,2 "Now these are the commandments…that ye might do them…that thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life…"

Deuteronomy 31:11-13, "Thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing, Gather the people together, men, women, and children…that they may hear and that they may learn, and fear the Lord your God…and that their children which have not known any thing, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God…"

Oh how important for our children to walk in the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is clean, it is strong, it is a fountain of life, and it is the beginning of wisdom and the beginning of knowledge. Refer to separate teaching sheet about walking in the fear of the Lord.

CHILDREN OF COURAGE AND VALOUR, WHO ARE STRONG IN THE LORD.

Exodus 18:21, "Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."

The word "able" is ‘chayil’. It means – a force, an army, wealth, virtue, valor, military strength, great forces, a host, might, power, noble, strong. It has the meaning of ‘a strength of an army’ – ‘a force to be reckoned with.’ God is looking for soldiers for His army, not wimps. He is looking for those who have been trained to battle with the enemy. He is looking for those who know how to overcome the enemy. He is looking for those who are after the victory. No wonder God calls our children "arrows". Psalm 127:4,5. In Bible days "arrows" were weapons of war!

Now this sounds great for our sons, but what about our daughters? No, they are not left out! You will be surprised to know that the word "able" in the Hebrew is exactly the same word that is translated '‘virtuous" in Proverbs 31:10. "Who can find a virtuous (chayil) woman, for her price is far above rubies." God also wants our daughters to be strong in the Lord, strong in faith, strong in truth, strong in their convictions, strong in commitment and strong in faithfulness. In fact, Proverbs 31:17 says that she is to be strong physically too. She should be strong for childbearing and child training. We are preparing our children for motherhood, which is a career that is not for wimps. It requires spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical strength.

This is a picture of the army God is raising. Song of Solomon 6:10, "Who is she that looks forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?"

CHILDREN WHO ARE KNOWN FOR TRUTH AND INTEGRITY.

Exodus 18:21, "Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."

The leaders who God is looking for are men and women who are ingrained in truth and integrity. God wants absolute truth in our hearts and minds and mouth - truth in the very inward being. I believe that this is the definition of integrity – being truthful and doing what is right in every situation, even when no one else is looking or no one else knows.

Truth is also understanding the will of God. The middle letter of trUth is U, which stands for UNDERSTANDING. Ephesians 5:17 says, "Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is."

We must train our sons and daughters in the ways of truth. We must seek God for truth. We must seek God’s perfect will for the roles of our children. We must train our sons for the future, training them to be prepared to one day provide for a home. They should understand from a young age that they are to work hard and study well because they will one day be the priests, the providers and the protectors of their homes. We should prepare our daughters for motherhood. They should understand that this is the greatest calling on which they will embark and that they are to be the nurturers, the nourishers and the nest builders of their homes.

Refer to separate teaching sheet about how God wants us to have truth in every part of our lives. Also read the following scriptures.

Romans 1:31; 1 Corinthians 14:20 Ephesians 1:18, "Col 1: 9; Colossians 2:2; 2 Tim 2:7; 1 John 5:20; Rev 13:18.

I love this scripture in 1 Chronicles 12:32, "The children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do." May we raise children who will be full of truth and understanding and who will know what to do.

Deuteronomy 4:5-8; Proverbs 3:5,6; Isaiah 59:14,15.

CHILDREN WHO WILL KEEP THE WAY OF THE LORD AND DO JUSTICE AND JUDGEMENT.

Genesis 18:19, "Abraham…For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him."

There is no justice or judgment in the land today. But God is looking for children who are being trained in godly homes in the way of true justice and judgment. In God’s time these children will come forth to bring godly judgment in the land.

Isaiah 26:8,9, "When Thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness."

CHILDREN WHO HAVE LEARNED TO WAIT.

How do we teach our children to wait? We teach them by our own example, by learning to wait for things ourselves. Here’s a secret! Never rush and buy something immediately. Always wait! Give God a chance to provide. Don’t rush and buy household appliances, clothes or anything that you think you need. WAIT! You will be amazed at how many times God will provide, if you have patience and wait. I am constantly challenged by Hebrews 6:12. "through faith and PATIENCE we inherit the promises."

Psalm 37:7, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him. Fret not thyself because of him who prospers in his way." v.16. "A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked." James 5:7,8. Hebrews 11:39.

CHILDREN WHO HAVE A CONTENTED SPIRIT.

How can we teach our children to have a contented spirit if we don’t have a contented spirit ourselves? If children see you wanting things and buying things, they’ll pick up the same spirit. May God work a contented spirit in our hearts so we’ll pass it on to our children.

Luke 3:14, "Be content with your wages." Do you grumble about your husband’s wages or are you content?

Phil 2:14,15, "Do all things without murmurings and disputings, that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world. "

Phil 4:11,12, "I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."

1 Tim 6:6-8, "Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content."

Hebrews 13:5, "Be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."

Children don’t need to get everything they want. They don’t need something every time they go to the shops. They will learn to be contented as they see us joyfully content with what we have.

CHILDREN WHO HAVE A THANKFUL AND GRATEFUL HEART.

This is such an important point. God doesn’t want grumblers in His army. He wants those who have an ‘attitude of gratitude.’

Psalm 34:1, "I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth."

Psalm 35:28, "My tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long."

Psalm 44:8, "In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name forever."

Palm 71:6,14,15,24, "My praise shall be continually of Thee…I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more."

Psalm 71:8, "Let my mouth be filled with Thy praise and with Thy honor all the day."

Ephesians 5:18-20, "Give thanks always for all things."

Colossians 2:7 NAS, "Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving."

1 Thessalonians 5:17, 8, "Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

Get out your Above Rubies again and look up page 8 in #48 issue which tells you a wonderful idea of how you can bring an overflowing thankful spirit into your home for yourself and for your children. Or check the article HOW TO CHANGE THE ATMOSPHERE IN YOUR HOME on this web site.

CHILDREN WHO KNOW HOW TO TRUST GOD.

Jeremiah 17:8, "Blessed is the man that trusts in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreads out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat comes, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

Our children need to learn to trust the Lord in the little things of life now, so they will know how to trust God in the bigger things of life. See the example of Joseph in

Genesis 45:6-8; Genesis 50:20; Proverbs 13:5,6; 16:20.

CHILDREN WHO HAVE HUMBLE HEARTS.

The people who God is looking for are those who have a humble spirit. Isaiah 66:2, "To this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word."

Isaiah 57:15, "For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones."

1 Peter 5:6, "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time."

CHILDREN WHO RESPECT ELDERS.

Children who have not learned to respect elders or have not learned how to respond to authority, will never be able to exercise authority themselves. Do we teach our children to show respect to older people?

Leviticus 19:32, "Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord." Ephesians 6:1-3.
Hebrews 13:17, "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves…"

Read also 1 Thessalonians 12,13; 1 Timothy 5:17; Hebrews 13:7.

CHILDREN WHO KNOW HOW TO WORK.

Teaching our children a work ethic is so important. God gave the principle of work to man for his blessing. Work is the law of man’s being. It is divinely inspired. It is therapeutic – physically, emotionally and mentally.

Genesis 2:8-15, "And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden…and the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."

The word ‘dress ‘ in the Hebrew is ‘avad’ and means, ‘to work, serve, labour, till.’ It is translated in other scriptures as "till", "work" and "serve".

Refer to separate article on THE PRINCIPLE OF WORK IN THE WORD OF GOD to see 24 different attitudes that God wants us to have towards work and what He wants us to teach our children about work.

CHILDREN WHO HAVE LEARNED TO SERVE.

Jesus shows us the example in Matthew 20:26-28, "It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave; even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:42-44; Luke 22:27b

Once again, how will our children learn to serve? Of course, when they see us joyfully serving in the home. If we grumble and complain about all we have to do, they will adopt this attitude also. But if they see that serving is our joy, they will learn to live this way. Read the beautiful example of Jesus in John 13:3-17.

CHILDREN WHO CAN ENDURE HARDSHIP.

Endurance is one of the most important qualities to impart to our children as we train them for God’s end-time task force. Endurance is a necessary attribute for a task force.

2 Tim 2:3,4 says, "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that wars entangles himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier."

Check the article on this web site called HOW CAN WE ENDURE? for further understanding on this subject.

CHILDREN WHO MAKE THE WORD OF GOD THEIR GUIDE FOR LIFE.

Most people today are unconsciously guided by the deceptive humanistic philosophy of this world. It shapes our society and even shapes our lives without our realizing it. This is why the homeschooling revival is part of God’s plan. When children are taken out of the public school system, which is ingrained in humanism, and instead trained and taught, in the pure truth of the Word of God, we will begin to see change. God wants an army coming forth that is not only ready for battle, but that is free from the contaminations and deceptions of society, an army that is entrenched and ingrained in the principles of God’s way for life and for warfare. Memorizing the Word of God for ourselves and teaching our children to memorize the Word of God is a wonderful way to make the Word of God part of their lives.

Read Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 19:7-11; Psalm 119; Matthew 4:4; Colossians 3:16a; 2 Timothy 2:15; James 1:22-25.

CHILDREN WHO HONOR THE BLOOD OF JESUS.

There is no use serving the Lord on our own efforts. The foundation of our service must be the fact that Jesus Christ shed His precious blood for us. Without the blood of Jesus, we cannot be saved. Without the blood of Jesus we cannot have cleansing for our sins. Without the blood of Jesus we can’t have forgiveness. Although we receive forgiveness for sins when we first come to the Lord, we still need His forgiveness on a daily basis.

In all our serving of the Lord we must acknowledge the blood of Jesus. We must teach our children the worth of the blood of Jesus. Many of the worship songs we sing today are wonderful but they don’t speak about the blood of Jesus. Sing the great hymns about the blood of Jesus together as a family. The last few days before my dear mother passed into glory, she asked the friends around her bedside to sing the hymns about the blood of Jesus. The truth of the blood of Jesus was her salvation through life and her comfort as she passed into the next life. Some of her favorites on this subject were: ‘What Can Wash Away my Sin’, ‘Have you Been to Jesus for the Cleansing power?’, and ‘There is a fountain filled with blood.’

Revelation 12:11 is such a powerful scripture, one that we should memorize and teach our children. "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto the death."

CHILDREN WHO ARE FILLED WITH COMPASSION.

One of the great attributes of God is that He is a God of compassion. Read the following scriptures:

Deuteronomy 13:17; 30:3; Psalm 78:38a; 86:15; 111:4; 112:4; 145:8; Lamentations 3:22.

Jesus also was filled with compassion. It was the motivating force of His ministry. We constantly read these words in the New Testament, "He was moved with compassion toward them." Matthew 14:14.

May God fill our hearts with compassion for the lost, for the poor, for the needy and hurting. May God help us to impart this grace to our children too. Read Colossians 3:12,13; 1 Peter 3:8.

CHILDREN WHO WILL NOT RETREAT.

Luke 9:62, "Jesus said unto him, No man having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

Hebrews 10:38-39, "Now the just shall live by faith; but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul." Read the sad testimony of the children of Ephraim in Psalm 78:9.

The most dangerous maneuver that an army can make in combat is to retreat. The "field of fire’ is the greatest defense for an army. We must be on the offensive against the enemy, not just the defensive. We are here to "destroy the works of the enemy." 1 John 3:8. Mothers, we are in a battle. We are at war. We must also teach our children our to fight the enemy, how to stand their ground, and never retreat.

God’s command to Joshua in Numbers 33:51-53 (which is the same to us today regarding our enemies) was to:

Drive out all the inhabitants,

Destroy all their pictures and molten images,

Demolish all their high places, and

Dispossess the inhabitants of the land!

I love some of the lines of the great missionary warrior, C. T. Studd who wrote:

Lord, send us lion-hearted men

With good courageous habits

Who ne’er will run from the devil’s gun

Like hares and bunny rabbits!

For genuine soldiers are heroes

"Chocolate soldiers" are shams

The soldiers of Jesus are lions

Not hares or timid lambs.

CHILDREN WHO HAVE "ANOTHER SPIRIT".

This is my favorite point of all. We are not training children to conform to this world. We are raising children who are set apart for God’s service. Let’s look at the story of Caleb.

Caleb was one of the 12 spies who was chosen to go in and check out the land of Caanan. Ten of the spies brought back a negative report. Only Caleb and Joshua believed that they could face the giants and the walled cities. While the others gave in to the problems that they saw, Caleb stilled the people and said, "Let us go up at once and possess it, for we are well able to overcome it…..neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not." Numbers 13:30-33; Numbers 14:6-10.

God was so upset with the lack of faith of the other ten spies and the rest of the children of Israel who believed their unbelieving report, that He said that not one of them would go in to see the promised land, "But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirithath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it." Numbers 14:24, with him, and Forty-five years later, after every one of those people had died in the wilderness, they come to the Promised Land.

Caleb is chafing at the bit. He has been waiting for 45 years to get into this land. Let’s feel his spirit as we read the account in Joshua 14:6-15. "Lo, I am this day 85 years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims (giants) were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said."

Do you get the picture of this man? He was ready for war! He was ready to tackle the mountain! He was ready to face the giants! He had "another spirit". He was different to everyone else. These are the kind of children we are to prepare for the Lord’s army. These are the children who will come forth from our homes, sharpened, polished, and trained and ready to bring godly change in the nation.

Oh mother, what a mighty task you have. God has commissioned you. It is your divine calling. While you train and disciple your children for God in the seclusion of your home, you are actually determining the destiny of the nation. You are shaping the future. You are cooperating with God to fulfil His purposes in these last days. Don’t despise your calling. Give it everything you’ve got.

HOW WILL YOU DO IT?

By God’s grace, His wisdom, His anointing, and His strength.

Don’t trust in your own resources.

Trust in His unfailing inexhaustible

resources that never run out.

Love from NANCY CAMPBELL, Above Rubies, PO Box 681687, Franklin, TN 37068

This information can also be found in the study manual, THE POWER OF MOTHERHOOD . For further details, click on the titles for more information.

THE POWER OF MOTHERHOOD

What God says about Motherhood in the Word of God

By Nancy Campbell

This manual tells you what God says about mothers! You will be surprised to read how much God is interested in mothering. You will be inspired, encouraged and uplifted as you study this manual. It is guaranteed to give you a greater vision for your divine calling of motherhood. There are 24 chapters that will take you into the Word of God to see what God says rather than what society says. There are questions at the end of each chapter that are great for personal meditation and encouragement and also to use as a study guide for Ladies Bible Study groups. Mothers all over the nation are studying this manual together and being strengthened and encouraged.

Special bulk prices for Bible Study groups.

God's Awesome Power!

On the Saturday morning at a recent Above Rubies camp I set off to the beach for an early morning walk. At one stage I stood still and gazed out to sea. The tide was coming and the thunderous roar of the waves was so loud that every other sound was swallowed up and lost within the bowels of the sea.

The spray caused by this mighty power rose high into the sky where beautiful colours of light from the dawn of the new day filtered through. Roll after roll of crashing waves rushed toward the beach. They gathered momentum until they reached their appointed place and then returned and started all over again - never ending, repeating the same scenario over and over and over again.

I was held captive by the sheer majesty and the awesome power of God’s workmanship. I felt privileged that God would show off His awesome power and the majestic handiwork of His creation to puny me. My heart rose within my breast. I opened my mouth and in full volume sang "My God is an awesome God."

On returning to my cabin I could not get the vision from my mind or the mighty sound from my ears. Although I have often witnessed and been inspired the many moods of the sea I had never been so moved.

As I meditated on my message to speak to the ladies that morning, God gave me a revelation. To share this revelation I needed some of the sea so I asked Della to fetch me some in a bottle. I was rather disappointed because when I put it side by side with a glass of water from the tap, it looked just the same. It smelled just the same. You could not tell the difference! In fact, it was not possible to tell the difference until you tasted it!

When the sea is in the sea it has an awesome power. You can see it is the sea, you can smell it is the sea and you can feel the granules of salt because the sea is always alive and moving. However, the moment you take the sea from its rightful, God-ordered place it loses its awesome power and blends in with the rest of its surroundings.

It is no longer unique, no longer set apart, no longer special. The thunderous sound of its roar is silenced. The awesome display of power and movement is immediately lost. The explosion sending the spray skyward to reach great and awesome heights is stilled. The forward thrust of the incoming tide that spewed out the dross, leaving its deposit on the beach is not just weak, it is non existent!

And so it is with us handmaidens, wives, mothers, grandmothers, and homemakers. When we are out of our God-ordered place that He has specifically ordained and provided for us we lose our God given power. On the outside we may look the same but we lose our full destiny.

The reason the sea is so powerful is because it is in the sea. And God is there. A wife and mother wields her true power when she is in her home, where her heart is beating strongly, gathering momentum as she trains and prepares her children to reach out into all the world. She is submitting to God’s laws - and God is there.

The sea, when removed by man, can be used in powerful ways, but they are man’s ways. It is the power of man and his power is weak! Likewise, when we leave the home by force or enticement to pursue outside ministries and careers we can generate a certain amount of power, but it is the power of man. We have forsaken or exchanged the awesome, majestic, power of God for the puny power of man. Proverbs says 16:25 says, "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man but the end thereof is the way of death."

If we want to turn our hearts, our church, our community, our nation, our world back to God’s ways, then we need to open our eyes and behold the source of our power. Like the sea, whose origin comes from God and who set it in its appointed place, so it is with us! We find our true power and glory as women and mothers when we remain within the environment created for us.

Of course there will be times when we are called by the Lord to reach out to perform certain chosen and even exciting tasks to help and bless others. But like the sea we will always return so we can regather and recharge only to be sent out again and again. From the heart of our home, we will find and fulfil our true destiny.

Will we be wives and mothers full of the power of God or weakened by the power and reasoning of man?

VAL STARES

Toowoomba, Australia

Val is the Director for Above Rubies in Australia.

Left To Cry

My story begins in the spring of 1966. My mother and father conceived me out of wedlock in their early twenties. Their identity and the facts surrounding life prior to my entrance to this world are unknown. I was born in a hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, and soon after birth I was sent to the Rock-a-Bye House to await adoption. Six weeks passed and Albert and Phyllis League adopted me. Mom and Dad had already adopted two boys - I was number three. They had a very special gift for loving children and overflowed with love. When I was four years they adopted my sister, Becki.

We spent most of our lives on a horse farm in Maryland. I met Jesus when I was 11 years and one of the first scriptures I learned was, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5). I always loved school and worked hard to be the best at everything. I experienced many stomachaches and worried much. I remember having nightmares and spending most nights curled up in a ball sobbing. Sometimes I would say, "Jesus, please don't leave me."

Through Junior and Senior High I excelled in academics, music, sports, and work. I grew busier each year and filled my time with activities and relationships. My stomachaches worsened and the night sobbing continued. My loneliness deepened. Nearly every night I cried out to Jesus, "I just want to be happy."

College life offered a new beginning. It was a great relief to leave the turbulence of home behind and set out on a new course. My relationship with the Lord began to grow. I met Jim Gregory soon after arriving at college and one year later we were married. I knew the Lord sent Jim into my life. He was God's choice for me and I could never have chosen such a perfect match.

During our first year of marriage I still curled in a ball and sobbed. I thought that marriage would heal this loneliness but it didn't. I cried when we made love and I "put off" my husband when he told me he wanted to have a baby. I felt it was important for us to "get to know each other first", finish college and "get settled".

I was deceived with these lies and was filled with selfishness. After college, I pursued a career in banking and children were postponed to "sometime in the future". For eight years we practiced birth control in the form of the Pill and spermicides.

At age 27 I gave birth to our first child, James Randell Gregory. Motherhood was something for which I was totally unprepared! There were no college courses to help me with this most important career. I didn't even have babysitting experience! A friend gave me a book that very outlined how to schedule your baby so life could go on as normal as possible. I read the book and thought it was the best tool a mother could have.

From the day we came home from the hospital I followed the eat-sleep-play routine just as the book instructed. My baby fell right into the routine. At nighttime I would nurse him while singing a quiet song, change his diaper, and swaddle him tight so he would feel secure and lay him in his bed. Jim and I would pray over him, turn on the night-light and shut the door. Off to bed we went.

Each night we would lay and listen to our new baby cry. "Should we get him?" we wondered. "No, the book says that if we go and get him every time he cries he won't learn to sleep on his own...he would become dependent upon me." Night after night I would listen to my baby's tiny cry change into a cry of desperation (which I interpreted as manipulation), to fear (which I thought was a temper tantrum) and then turn to a sob (which I thought, "he's finally giving up!")

I lay rigid in my bed, fighting the urge to "rescue" my baby, to hold him close to my breast. In my heart of hearts I knew this was wrong but the voice of the intellectuals was too great. How could it be wrong if it was so widely supported by the intellectual Christian community I so highly respected? I certainly did not want to raise an undisciplined, spoiled brat! I wanted my parenting to have good results!

After eight weeks I achieved the highly acclaimed goal of getting my baby to sleep through the night. I was physically and emotionally strung out despite the assurances that this practice would allow me to get the rest I needed. I was deceived. We moved from Pennsylvania to Illinois in July 1996.

Our daughter, Evajo Hannah was born and I followed the same regimented schedule. However this time I did not crucify my conscience; she slept in our room at night and when she cried I picked her up and nursed her back to sleep. The taunts of "undisciplined" echoed in my mind, but I ignored them, mainly because the family had to get some sleep! After ten years of marriage and two children, I continued to experience the night-sobbing and deep loneliness.

However, on May 18, 1997 while praying in our Home Group the Lord delivered me from the thirty-one year oppression of loneliness, fear and rejection. During prayer I had what was either a memory or a vision. 'I was lying in a crib curled in a ball. As I watched white curtains gently move I sobbed the identical deep lonely sob that I had sobbed for years in my bed. I began to cry aloud, "I'm so alone, I'm so alone" and for a period of time during that prayer I grieved the deep pain of rejection, abandonment and fear that had clung to me for years.'

That night I forgave my birth parents for abandoning me! Psalm 27:10 AMP says, "Although my father and my mother have forsaken me, yet the Lord will take me up [adopt me as His child]." Since that night I have never curled in a ball and sobbed that lonely sob ever again!

Later the Lord showed me Psalm 129:1,2 "They have greatly oppressed me from my youth, let Israel say they have greatly oppressed me from my youth, but they have not gained the victory over me." Our third child, Raymond Albert, was born in July 1998. This time I made myself available to baby Ray whenever he needed me. He slept with me, pacified at my breast, ate when he was hungry and he never knew what it was to lay alone in his crib and cry for a mommy who wouldn't come.

Ray is a year old now and we are doing great! The story does not end here. On New Year's Day, 1999 the Lord very gently revealed that just as my birth parents had abandoned me, I had abandoned my first born in those early weeks of his life. His sobs were not "signs of giving up", but cries of deep despair and like my birth parents, I did not come for him.

I was stunned at the revelation and my mind flooded with screams of "how could you have done this to your baby?" I repented before the Lord of my sin of ignorance and asked His forgiveness and restoration. I prayed for an opportunity to confess my sin to my son and seek his forgiveness and restoration. The restoration was necessary because a root of insecurity, mistrust and anger had grown in our relationship. This resulted in a strong rebellion against my correction and discipline.

About two weeks passed and one evening James Randell asked me to tell him the story of "when Mommy was a baby". Looking down into his beautiful eyes I held him in my arms and told him the story of my adoption. I told him how my Mommy didn't keep me. "She gave me to the nurses at the hospital and didn't hold or nurse me." He looked at me so puzzled, "But why Mommy?" His expression moved me to tell him, "Sometimes I would lay in my crib and cry for my mommy, but she never came.

Honey, when you were a baby, sometimes you would cry and I did not come to you." "You didn't pick me up? Why Mommy?" "Well, when you were born Mommy did not know much about babies so I read a book about what to do. The book said not to pick your baby up every time he cries." His looked changed to a very disrespectful 'are you stupid' then he said, "Do you still have the book?" "It's on the bookshelf. What should I do with it?" He pondered the question and after a bit he said, "I think we should throw it in the dumpster!" I smiled at the finality of his decision.

"James Randell, Mommy was wrong. I should have come to you when you cried for me, I should have picked you up, held you close and nursed you. Will you please forgive me?" Without hesitation he put his hand on my cheek and said, "I forgive you Mommy." My eyes filled with tears and I hugged him tight for a long time.

Forgiveness is the beginning of healing and restoration. James Randell now receives correction from me. I am grateful for God's promise, "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit." Psalm 32:1,2

MISSY GREGORY
Quincy, Illinois, USA

Mothering Free

“Your daughter is rather wild and free, isn’t she?” folks would say to my mother with raised eyebrows. Yes, that was me! As a young girl, I would finish my jobs around the house and leap and bound over the fields, waving my arms in the air and yelling at the top of my lungs, “I’m free! I’m free!” No one could be within two feet of me or I would feel confined! Why did people make cars when you could sit on the back of a truck with the wind blowing through your hair? Extra clothes? Hindrances! There was a time when only one garment hung in my wardrobe!

I had an overdeveloped urge to be free. Nobody in their right mind could imagine me married, let alone having children! My father always said that if I ever said “Yes” to a man, there would be a major earthquake or war would break out! Well, - I was living in Israel when I eventually said “Yes” and the Gulf War broke out the next day! Guess what else? I am now happily married with 10 beautiful children - and what’s more, I am mothering free!

But I am not the only one with a drive to be set free! Creation itself groans and labors with birth pangs. It yearns to be set free from the slavery of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.¹

That’s not all. I too have heard groaning. It’s the cry of mothers, grooooaaaaning like the groans that rise from fields of slavery. But this slavery is not due to color, tribe, religion or race. It’s from bad attitudes that enslave the heart. For as a women thinks, so she is! We need to leave the negative fields of slavery behind and revolt in the name of Jesus! The status quo crowd can yell all they like, “You’re a little wifey without any lifey!”

The truth is…

1. You are not a member of the status quo crowd!

2. You are a nurturer! If we try to become or do what we are not, we are going against natural rules and we enter into anarchy or bondage mothering! Freedom Mothering is releasing and freeing, for it follows God’s divine decree. God counsels us to love our husband and children, to be obedient to our husband, to be keepers of our homes and be good and kind.2 Not that hard. But oh how many emotional hours are spent wishing away what we are told to do. In Job 38:2 God cries out, “Who is this who darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?” We must not allow our puny humanistic attitude to darken God’s counsel.

3. You are born for the job! You are distinctively individual, yet woven and created from birth to bear and nurture children of promise, whose individual destinies can impact the world.

Before you can step into freedom, you have to stop feeling sorry for yourself. Stop talking to your friends about how hard your life is. Stop having pity parties. The Bible says that the truth will set you free!³

Are you ready for the truth? Are you ready to take the chains off?

Freedom mothering is not getting out of mothering – it’s getting into it!

It’s getting free from the bondages that hinder motherhood.

“What should mothers be free from?” I asked unsuspecting mothers, fathers and children who walked along my path over the last several weeks. As you read their responses, your hand too might pop up in agreement too.

Free from Chaos

The collective plea from all was to be free from chaos! Chaos is the opposite of order. I believe we cannot be truly free, unless we have our lives in order!

Free from Whining Children

Mothers want freedom from whining, crying, bratty children! Let’s all raise our hands for this one! We cannot have order unless we have order with our children! I love to let my children play hard. They blow off billows of steam outside playing knights, cowboys, daredevils and cooking in the mud etc. but when they come in around suppertime, they come into “Twilight Time” - dim lights, candles, soft music and a peaceful atmosphere. This really helps to melt and mellow the wild ones and cut down on bratty behavior. Try it! Of course, any fighting or excessive yelling needs discipline. Just do it with love.

Free from Toy Box Blues

Is there any order to this mess? ‘Stuff’ does not have order! It clutters our life. We can’t see, think straight, or even make decisions because we have too much ‘stuff’! Luke 9.25 says “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul.” Ladies, we might not be losing our souls, but we are losing our minds trying to gain stuff and then keep it somewhere!

My sisters and I have recently coined another motto for our lives: “We are running after children – not stuff!” A lot of us run after things that do not make for peace and freedom mothering. It is better to concentrate on keeping our children in order rather than stuff. Let it go and be free! Things do not make you rich! Children do! Children do not need another toy - they need you! Excess toys create fights, chaos and mess. I hate them!

My children gave all their extra toys and stuff away. I then procured a dining room cabinet and gave each child their own drawer in which to keep their toys and precious possessions. They each look after their drawer and love to give the extra away when it overflows. And I don’t have to look at an ugly toy box!

Free from Excess Laundry

Laundry! Frown no more. It is fun when you limit the amount of clothes you own. In our family, for the sake of peace, space and efficiency we have one tub per child. Anything that overflows the tub we give away, otherwise we end up standing on clothes. With nine people in our two-roomed cabin and living on the land with no sown grass, let me tell you, we have mud! But I do not exceed two loads of laundry a day. I do one load in the morning when I wake and turn on the knob for the second load as I jump into bed at night. The beautiful hum helps me go sleep. The washing machine is not my enemy but my friend.

Free from Fear of Others

Don’t take too much stock of what people think of you. Don’t be ruled by what the Joneses think. Be ruled by what Jesus thinks. It’s okay to enjoy mothering the way you want to! Climb out of the mold of what other mothers look like. Be yourself, for crying out loud, and God will be happy too! He does not want to love ‘dear Peggy Sue’ twice over. He loves ‘dear Peggy Sue’ and ‘weirdMary Lou’, just the way He made them!

Free from Discouragement

When we feel alone or blue, we too easily rush to the phone or nearest book, person or place - anywhere but God himself. It is much easier to look at a magazine than to take the time to find out what God wants for you and your children! Instead, cry out, “God, encourage me. Call forth the greatness in my children and me - everything you made us to become - the dreams, visions and soul yearnings.” His words will feed and fill you! Praise Him and watch your prison doors burst open!

Free from Yelling and Divorce

This was an answer that many of the children gave to me. We yell when we are out of control. Let’s bring our lives and homes into order and let’s have no more divorce. Divorce is rampant but we would be blind to think that it is just from husbands. Many women try to divorce themselves from spending time with their children, rather than embracing them. Where is the mother’s heart that cries out, “Give me children, or else I die?”⁴Now we often hear, “Take them from me, anywhere, just take them else I die!” “Anywhere” could be - excess daycare, television, movies, other people, anything other than deal with our blessings in front of us!

Why do we have to sacrifice our children for our dreams? Who knows? Maybe they will carry them on! King David’s dream to build God a house extended to the next generation!⁵ We need to have long-sighted vision, rather than short-sighted vision where our dreams end with us. God thinks generationally, not only individually. Pass on your vision.

Psalm 45.16 says, “Your sons will take the place of your fathers, you will make them princes throughout the land. I will perpetuate your memory through all generations, therefore the nations will praise you for ever and ever.”

Wow! When a woman matures from having an ‘all about me, daddy’s daughter mentality’ into the place of mothering the next generation, she makes an impact on the world! She perpetuates her memory through the generations. Mothering becomes her greatness and glory! Live for something greater than yourself and find your feet on the way to freedom!

God threw me a whammy the other day while reading about one of the most wicked women in the Bible. There once lived a mother called Athaliah (Queen Jezebel’s daughter), who killed all the royal sons, including her own, so she could be the queen!⁶ For the next week, this story faced me everywhere I went or every time I opened the Bible. “What are you trying to tell me, God?” I cried. “I mean, what mother in her right mind would sacrifice her children, just to have the limelight?” Then it hit me – whammo! We sacrifice our children in order to fulfill our careers, our missions, our visions, and our limelight! It is rampant even in the Christian world. Do we have the same spirit as Athaliah? May God show us the areas where we have been needlessly sacrificing our children in order to take the stage! It is time to gird ourselves like Samuel, fill our horn with oil, break the bound vision where our dreams end with us, and anoint the new order, the new generation!⁷

Our true source of freedom is Christ! He calls us to jump on the freedom train and ride out our life in freedom! The whistle is blowing – who is riding with me?

Your friend, Vangi.

EVANGELINE CAMPBELL
Primm Springs, Tennessee, USA

Howard and Evangeline are blessed with 10 children – 21 years to 4 year.

1) Romans 8:21-22

2) Titus 2:4-5

3) John 8:32

4) Genesis 30:1

5) Genesis Chapters 28 and 29; 2 Chronicles Chapters 6 and 7

6) 2 Chronicles 22:10-12; 23:1-15

7) 1 Samuel 16:1-15

Moanhood or Motherhood?

“Who can find a virtuous woman for her price is far above rubies”
(Proverbs 31:10)

I am often drawn to this text as I pray for God to mold me into the woman He desires me to be, no matter how much against the stream of normalcy it seems.

My Interlinear Bible, which is translated directly from the Hebrew, inspires me when I read, “Who can find an able woman? For her value is far above jewels.” The word “able” hit me with a giant thud. I wasn’t as pricked by the word “virtuous” as virtues seem to abound in the feminine sex! I’m only being slightly sarcastic! But “able!” “Able?”

As mothers and wives we often spend wasted brain space mulling over just the opposite. Do these words sound familiar? “I can’t do it anymore!” “I don’t have the energy!” “I’m drained! I have nothing more to give.” “I’m too tired! I’m completely exhausted and wasted. I can’t do one more thing!” We talk ourselves out of any last vestige of energy, and by the power of our minds we feel even more tired than we really are!

“Honey, not tonight! Actually I’ve got a headache. No, it’s a migraine.” “Oh, I just need some time for myself.” “I feel so used. Nobody appreciates what I do around here.” “I’ve got to get out. I’ve got cabin fever.” “I didn’t get a good sleep last night. Come to think of it, I never get a good sleep. It’s all making me old before my time. I found a new wrinkle this morning.”

Ugh! This is putting me in the doldrums just writing about it!

How can our husband value us more than jewels when our lives are one big complaint?

It is true that we talk ourselves into more than half of our problems. How can we be “able” women and how can our husbands and children truly value us above jewels when our lives are one big complaint? I think the key to being “able” is more about being positive than it is about all the talent and intellect we possess. There are many gifted people who never accomplish half of what the mere motivated and persevering achieve.

How can we be positive mothers when we have made a career of being professional moaners?

Have we embraced moanhood instead of motherhood? Just as negativity is a habit, so is a positive and happy heart. The more we think on the good things, the more they become naturally part of our nature. The negative muscles become floppy, weak and slowly deteriorate when we don’t use them. Philippians 4:8 tells us to think on things that are pure and lovely. If we make a habit of thinking about the lovely things, in turn, our lives will be a lot lovelier.

We can become negative by worrying about the future. We may dwell today on all the work we have to do tomorrow or even in the months to come. Again, the wisdom of the Bible frees our minds and makes for a happy mother when it says, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34).

God is very interested in our thought-life and in the confessions of our lips. Here are just a few quotes:

“A merry heart does good like medicine” (Proverbs 17:22).

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21).

“Gird up the loins of your mind” (1 Peter 1:13).

A positive attitude breathes life into our soul and body and actually gives us energy.

A positive attitude breathes life into our souls and bodies and actually gives us energy. Satan is all too eager to plant seeds of negativity into our minds because he knows they are seeds of death and make us “unable!” Negativity is based upon fear, which chokes the very life out of its victims and renders them practically immobile. Negativity holds us captive in a prison of gloom. Being positive frees us to succeed and thrive. Some people see their negative outlook as being realistic. This is another trap of the enemy; a smoke screen to blind us to the truth that will set us free to really live and enjoy life.

There are always two ways to look at things. I exercise everyday as part of my job description as a fit, healthy and happy wife and mother. Many times while on the treadmill I start thinking, “I feel awful. My legs are burning. I can hardly breathe. I feel like pulling the plug.” With every second I grow more tired and soon feel completely drained. The fact is everything I’m feeling is truth. However, when I “gird up my mind” I remember how good I’ll feel afterwards and that 30 minutes isn’t that long. “I’ve only got 15 more minutes to go. I’m breathing really well now, and hey, this is easy. I feel great. I’ll race anyone. I’m going to pick up my pace. Wow, look at me go!” There is as much truth in this second thought process and I injected myself with a bunch of energy and ended up with a full tank.

We can feel just as good as we can feel bad!

You may get up in the morning, sigh and drag yourself to the coffee pot confessing, “I was up with the baby for four solid hours last night. I can’t make it through today.” This may be true, but the other side of the story is that you had four good hours of sleep. We can feel just as good as we can feel bad.

Thinking negatively involves the “me” word. It makes one too introspective. My mother always says, “If you are feeling depressed, go and do something for someone else. You’ll soon forget about your own problems.”

The negative “so called” facts are not truth at all. They are the enemy’s poisonous darts. To contemplate them digs their venom deeper into your mind. The truth is that we are new creatures in Christ. We are to crucify the “flesh man” and live by the Spirit. The fruit of the Holy Spirit such as patience and longsuffering are now our new character traits. In Christ we can bear way more than the level the devil deceives us into thinking we can handle.

The second line of Proverbs 31:10 reads, “The heart of her husband trusts in her so that he has no lack of gain.” The New Living Translation reads, “She will greatly enrich his life.” How can we enrich our husbands when our own lives are anything but enriched? We can’t give from a drained pot. Often we feel empty and exhausted, not because of our tedious workload so much as the state of our mental reflections.

How can a husband feel enriched if his wife is not contended and happy?

How can a husband have “no need of gain” if his wife isn’t happy and contented? If we greet him at the door with a tired expression, a list of complaints, and quickly pass off all the children to him, his welcome home will not be very enriching. It may make him want to retreat! Home should be a solace from the worry and stress with which the world assails him. It should be a place of enriching, a gas station to fill his tank before venturing back into his world of business and stress. Our homes should be an oasis where our husband can take a cool drink of the water of peace, love and laughter. We should meet him at the door with a bright smile, a warm welcome, and with a cheery atmosphere pervading the home.

If he asks how our day was, and we remember how Suzie cut off her little sister’s hair, how Johnny peed on the clean folded clothes, or how the baby spread the surprise in his diaper like peanut butter around the crib, we might feel compelled to say it was a “bad day.” But wait a second! Let’s get out of our negative tunnel vision and see the big picture. There were no major accidents. We are all still alive and breathing. Suzie did really well at her reading lesson and Johnny picked some weeds from the garden and said I was a “beaubibul laby.” It was a lovely day. Come to think of it, it was a great day!

When the atmosphere of our home is filled with optimism, our husband and children will feel they can do anything.

The Proverbs 31 woman “opens her mouth with wisdom and the law of kindness is on her tongue.” As hormonal creatures, we women can sometimes become so emotionally pent up that when our husband comes home we vomit our feelings all over them before they have a chance to take off their coats. We were made to be our husband’s helpmeet. We were made to complete him and enrich his life. God did not create man to be the woman’s emotional counselor or hormonal dartboard. The more we press into God and become positive-thinking women, the less we will be inclined to emotionally regurgitate. Spurting out a bunch of negative goo gah is not opening the mouth in wisdom. Nor is it kind. It is like serving our husband a glass of gravel instead of giving them a refreshing drink of happiness.

Men are not emotional sorts and just don’t get the problem. My friend told me how she told her husband that she was feeling “out of sorts.” He replied, “Don’t feel out of sorts.” This reply was the right answer but not the one she wanted to hear. Men are wired differently so when our skies look gray we need to go to God first and then maybe call a close girlfriend who will lend a listening ear.

Proverbs 31 continues with its description of the “able” woman. “She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms… she extends her hand to the poor. Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy…strength and dignity are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come… she watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.”

A hardworking woman doesn’t have time to waste in negative contemplation. She has more important things pressing on her mind. If we are truly busy we won’t have time to stop and moan. I can’t picture Mother Theresa complaining about how tired she was or turning away another child.

I love the way the curtains draw on the “able” woman. “Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.” The Hebrew word for “praises” is “halal.” It means “to shine, to make a show, to boast, to rave, to glorify, to make renown. The root of this word has the idea of radiance.” Are we worthy of such acclamation?

Let us take on a spirit of rejoicing and do away with negative gloom. We will then be free to be “able” women whose value is above jewels.

SERENE ALLISON
Primm Springs, Tennessee, USA

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