Blessed by My Mother: Exodus 20:12

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you” (Exod. 20:12, NASB).

The second Sunday in May is celebrated in America as a national holiday—Mother’s Day. It was begun by Anna Jarvis May 9, 1905. On May 10, 1908 President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation for a national holiday. On May 10, 1908 a service of worship was held at the St. Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia to honor mothers. In the United States Mother’s Day is celebrated with church services, cards, carnations, and family dinners. From a personal perspective, Mother’s Day is more than cards, carnations, family dinners, and church services. For me, it is another day for me to reflect on the reality that my life has been and continues to be blessed by my mother.

Long before Anna Jarvis began Mother’s Day, the scriptures tell God’s covenant people to honor their mothers and fathers. The scripture passage in Exodus is the fifth commandment of ten that the Lord gives to the Israelites as a covenant. The people are told that if they honor their fathers and mothers that they will live for a long time in the land that the Lord gives to them; the Promised Land—Canaan. In the New Testament Paul the apostle writes to the church in Ephesus to encourage unity and prosperity. He writes: “Children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right. Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth. The Exodus passage is a promise to the people of Israel, and Paul applies it to the church. Mother’s Day is a day in which we celebrate our mothers because of the many ways that they bless our lives.

I will not attempt to answer all the questions that we might have about celebrating our mothers. For sure, everyone is not blessed to have a good mother. There are orphans that do not know their mothers. We cannot ignore the fact that some mothers are not good mothers. Indeed, they may be cruel and abusive unable to meet the needs of their children because of their own personal problems and life circumstances. Regardless of these truths, I must confess that my mother was a good and godly mother. I confess that even today, I am blessed by my mother.

Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist stated that we are motivated by a “hierarchy of needs.” These needs are categorized as “Basic needs” to include physiological needs of air, food, water, warmth, and rest. Also, we have basic “psychological needs.” These include needs of safety and security. A second set of psychological needs include “belongingness and love needs,” including the need for intimacy and friendship. We have “esteem needs” to include prestige and feelings of accomplishment. The fifth need is “self-actualization” or self-fulfillment. It is achieving one’s full potential, including creative activity. When I reflect on my life, it is easy for me to see that my mother was the most influential person in seeing that these needs were met in my life. I not only celebrate what my mother has done, I am motivated to stand firm in the principles and values that she instilled in me.

First, I recognize the fact that from the time of my conception in my mother’s womb that my mother provided for my basic needs. In the womb, the infant is totally dependent upon the mother for their basic needs. Only the mother provides the oxygen (air), food, water through the umbilical cord that connects infant and mother and carries these vital requirements in her blood to the child that she carries. The womb is a safe incubator for the infant, protecting it from the environment outside the womb that the infant is not mature enough to survive on its own. Even after the infant is born into the world, it remains dependent upon a mother to provide these basic needs. When the daughter of Pharaoh finds the child upon the waters she gives him an identity. He will be her son and his name is Moses. The new adoptive mother is unable to provide for the child’s basic needs to survive. She accepts the offer of the young Hebrew girl to find a Hebrew mother to provide for these needs (See Exodus 2:1-10).

My mother provided for my psychological needs. I felt safe and secure when in the presence of my mother. Now, for some of the modern parents, I lived in a world in which children were spanked for their wrong doings. Yes, I believe that there are benefits to discipline children with a spanking. However, I do not recommend it today because often the parent is venting their anger and frustrations instead of using spanking as a tool to aid in teaching principles and values. Yes, I got a lot of whippings growing up, but I do not remember ever getting a spanking without knowing the reason why. My mother’s goal was to help me to understand that there are unpleasant consequences for wrong behaviors. It was not to vent her anger and frustrations.

I knew that I belonged to someone. Naturally, I belonged to my mother and by extension to my daddy and my sisters and brothers. My brothers and sisters were my friends; my playmates. As I grew older I knew that I belonged in the family because of shared times in play and work. The term “family values” is often met with various responses. I will just say that my mother led the way for me to learn that our family intended to live by certain principals and values. After I started school, I learned that my teachers and many of my classmates knew something about my family’s principles and values too. They, especially the teachers, were quick to remind me of these whenever they wanted me to behave appropriately and when they wanted to encourage me to do the things that would help me to advance in life positively.

My mother instilled in me a feeling of self esteem; self worth. She did this through word and example in her own behavior. When I went to the fields to work with my daddy, I saw my daddy doing what my mother had told me to do. I felt good about myself because I could measure up to expectations. I begin to have my own expectations of myself. However, did you know that the term self-esteem is not found in the scriptures? I say scriptures because my mother taught me that ultimately it is God who established the principles and values that I was to live by. I was to respect His authority and obey His commandments. In doing so, I would meet the approval of my parents, siblings, teachers, and other people important in my life. The prophet Isaiah understood himself better and he had a different satisfaction of his life when He was in the temple and he saw the greatness of the Lord. He came to know that in spite of his littleness, he could do great things because the Lord touched his lips and gave him the right things to say and do (See Isaiah 6:1-7).

Jesus calls us to self-actualization. We can have reachable goals if they are based on who we are in Jesus Christ. You see, that is the down side of self esteem. Self esteem is based on my own desires and my perception of myself. In the temple the prophet sees the Lord who gives him new desires and goals that he would never have thought about doing on his own. For us, Jesus calls us to give up our own selfish ambitions and become His disciples. He said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Lk. 9:23, NASB). So, for me Mother’s Day is more than celebrating the goodness of my mother. I honor my mother because she provided for all my creaturely needs, and she introduced me to the One who is able to provide every need that I have; including the forgiveness of sin and eternal life in Christ Jesus. Surely, I am blessed by my mother.